More Than Life
by Tardis19
Summary: Bestselling author, Edward Cullen is newly divorced and sworn off women until Bella Swan comes into his life and turns everything upside down. However, his ex is still pining after him and will do all she can to get him back. Can Edward and Bella have their happily ever after?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: **Well, hello. Yes, I've been absent for a while. _Just Maybe_ was pulled from this site for reasons unknown and I'm doing my best to get it back. While I'm waiting to hear about it, I thought I'd put up something else I've been working on. As of right now, there is no set updating schedule for this story. I'll do my best to upload every two weeks, but life has been crazy busy lately so I'm not making any promises.

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**More Than Life**

"God fucking dammit!" I roared as some fucking asshole cut me off. _Jesus!_ What the fuck was wrong with people?

I watched as the asshole in the red truck weaved in and out of traffic like he was in the Indy 500. Idiots like that got people killed.

I was already in a foul mood and that asshole hadn't helped. Traffic was a nightmare, and I was running late for an appointment. Finally, I pulled into the parking lot of the Law Offices of Yorkie and Benz. Grabbing my briefcase, I slammed the car door shut and stomped my way inside. The elevator ride to the fourth floor seemed to take for-fucking-ever, and I was ready to tear my hair out.

Once the elevator arrived, I stepped out and made my way toward the secretary.

"Edward Cullen," I barked to the mousy receptionist.

"He's been expecting you. Go on in to the conference room," she said, barely looking at me.

Of course, he had been. He and my soon-to-be ex-wife were more than ready to try and take me for everything I was worth. _Fuckers_. I was confident that the bitch wouldn't see a fucking dime of my money. _Those pesky prenups were such a bitch_, I thought with a smirk.

I opened the door to the conference room and saw Tanya and Eric Yorkie on one side of the table, and my attorney, Jasper, on the other side. Jasper Whitlock, Attorney at Law. Still cracked me up. I'd always figured he'd end up in prison. He'd been a wild child, causing hell and wreaking havoc, and then he'd met my sister, Alice. He'd fallen hard for her, but she'd wanted nothing to do with him. Told him that she wouldn't be seen with a delinquent. It had taken time, but he'd eventually cleaned up his act, and now here he was. He didn't normally handle divorce cases, but he'd made an exception for me. Most of the time he was busy prosecuting the kind of delinquents he used to be.

Jasper raised an eyebrow at me as I slid into the seat next to him. I shook my head, indicating that I'd tell him later why I was late.

"You're late," Yorkie said, stating the obvious.

"At least I showed," I replied, making him flush.

Last time we'd had a meeting scheduled, Tanya and Yorkie had been a no show. I figured they'd been too busy fucking to show up. There was no doubt in my mind that she was screwing him. She couldn't afford him otherwise.

"Let's get started," Jasper said.

I spent the next hour listening to Tanya whine and bitch about everything. She wanted the house. I said no. She wanted the car. Again, no. She wanted to keep the dog. Fine. She could have the fucking dog. It was a tiny-ass yippy thing that annoyed me to no end. And of course, she wanted my money, and she wanted a lot of it.

_One word, bitch. Prenup._ As Jasper pointed out to her, she'd willingly signed it, and since she had been caught cheating she would receive nothing.

"Well, if _he'd_ been around more, and better in bed, I wouldn't have had to look elsewhere," she whined.

Jasper gave her a look that said tough shit. "Doesn't matter. You cheated, violating not only your marriage vows but the terms of the prenup. As a result, you will get nothing. My client has agreed to let you have the dog. Be grateful you're getting anything."

Sensing that she wasn't going to win, she and Yorkie took a few minutes to talk in his office. Yeah, right. Talking, my ass. _She was probably blowing him__. _

They came back in a few moments later, and her lips looked slightly swollen. I couldn't contain my shudder at the fact that she had quite obviously been blowing him.

"My client is asking for alimony," Yorkie said as they sat back down.

Jasper shot them an incredulous look. "Are you kidding me? Not happening. She's leaving the marriage with what she brought into it. Nothing, except for the dog. We will not be giving alimony."

"We'll let the judge decide that." Yorkie sneered.

I couldn't believe the nerve of the cheating bitch. If wasn't one thing, it was another. My family had warned me that she was a gold-digger, but I hadn't believed them. I'd been stupid, young, and naïve, thinking that she was the one. Five years later, at the age of twenty-six, I was getting divorced, or at least trying to. She was making it fucking difficult.

I'd found her cheating on me five months previously and had filed for divorce right away. Then I'd hauled my ass down to see my dad, who was a doctor, and had him run some blood tests. God knew how many men she'd been fucking and what kind of diseases she might have had. Thankfully, all my tests had come back negative.

"Don't forget," Jasper said, breaking me out of my thoughts as we left the conference room. "We have an appointment with the judge on Thursday at nine. Don't be late."

"I hadn't planned on being late today. Traffic was a bitch and then some fucking asshole cut me off and almost caused an accident. I'll be there on time. Promise."

"You going to dinner at your folks tonight?"

I shook my head. "I need to write. I've got a deadline that I need to meet and all these fucking meetings are cutting into my writing time."

Jasper nodded in understanding. "Alright, but you are still coming to the barbeque on Saturday, right?"

_Shit. _ I'd totally forgotten about it. Alice and Jasper hosted a barbeque once a month, and it was usually a fucking blast. Great food, great friends and family, plus lots and lots of alcohol.

"Yeah, I'll be there," I told him, which meant that I was going to have to bust my ass to get the next five chapters submitted to my editor before then.

After saying goodbye to Jasper, I left Port Angeles and headed to my house in Forks. As a kid, I couldn't wait to leave Forks behind. The minute I'd graduated, I'd packed up my shit and headed off to Loyola in Chicago. I'd fallen in love with the big city and all the noise and the hustle and bustle that went with it. That was where I'd met Tanya.

I'd been a sophomore in college and she'd been a junior, studying fashion design. I'd met her at a party and quickly learned that she was quite "orally talented". I should've realized that she was attracted to the dollar signs attached to my name, but I hadn't. I had thought she loved me for me, not for my fucking trust fund. It wasn't until after graduation that things had started to fall apart.

I'd been busting my ass off as a waiter in the evenings, and as a gofer at a publishing company, trying to make ends meet. Yes, I'd had a trust fund, but I'd been trying to prove that I didn't need it to survive. Tanya and I had spent a lot of time fighting over it until I'd finally given in. Then she'd wanted a lavish wedding that had cost a small fortune, most of which I'd paid for. It had sickened me every time I took money out of it to pay for bills. I knew that's sort of what it was there for, but I'd wanted to prove to my dad that I was independent and could take care of my wife.

A year later, I'd blown through a good portion of my trust fund because I'd been trying to keep us afloat and my wife happy. It was with shame that I'd gone crawling home with Tanya at my side. My dad and I had had a long talk about responsibility and money after that.

Six months later, we were still living with my parents, much to my embarrassment and Tanya's annoyance. I'd begun saving money again while working for a lumber company. I'd hated working there, but I did what I had to do. Tanya had finally gotten off her ass and had gotten a job working at the diner, something that I'd listened to her bitch about every second of the freaking day.

In the meantime, I had started writing a novel. Writing helped me vent my anger and frustration, and soon I had over four hundred pages. It wasn't fantastic by any means, but it was mine. My mom had been an English teacher for a while and I gave it to her to read and edit. It was with her praise and encouragement that I'd sent it off to several publishing companies. I'd always loved writing but had never figured anything would come of it.

I got rejection letter after rejection letter, but I'd expected that. So when I got a letter from Volturi Publishing saying they were interested in my novel, I'd about had a heart attack. Volturi was one of the largest publishing companies in the country and the fact that they were interested in my novel had blew my mind.

A year later, my story had been edited, fixed to perfection, and put on the market. It had done amazingly well, and even made the New York Times Bestseller list. It had been so fucking unreal. I was twenty-four with a real fucking novel under my belt. My second and third novels were also huge hits. Money had started to come in, and the minute it did, Tanya had quit her job at the diner, choosing to play housewife instead.

I'd bought a house, and we'd moved in right away. It was in that house, in my bedroom, in my bed, that I'd found my loving wife screwing the plumber. No joke. I'd come home from a book signing early and found her rolling around in the sheets, making horrible porn noises.

I'd kicked them both out, managing not to beat the shit out of either of them. Five months later, I was still trying to get rid of her. She just kept showing up, pleading for me to take her back. That she was sorry, blah, blah, blah. It was all bullshit. In actuality, I could have given her the house since I didn't want to live there anymore, but instead I was in the process of selling it and having a new one built. She was furious about that. Demanded half the money from the sale of the house, but since I'd bought it and it was only in my name, I'd told her no. If she wanted money, she was going to have to find someone else to get it from.

Arriving home, I pulled my Volvo into the garage, went inside, and booted up my laptop to check my emai. I had an urgent email from my editor, Marcus.

"Well, fuck," I announced once I finished reading it.

Marcus was retiring and handing me over to someone else. That fucking sucked. I really liked Marcus, but I couldn't blame him for retiring. He told me that I was going to be working with someone fairly new to the company, but that he had faith in her. _Jesus, he was leaving me with some newbie._

Grabbing my cell, I gave Marcus a call.

"Eddie, my boy! How are you?" he said as he picked up.

He knew about all the Tanya drama that I was going through.

"I'm alright. She keeps dragging shit out, but I think it's finally almost over. So, you're leaving me, huh?"

"Sorry, my boy. Doc says I have to retire. Apparently, my poor heart can't take much more stress."

We talked for a few minutes before I brought up the new replacement.

"So, who's replacing you?" I asked.

"Her name is Bella Swan. She works here in the New York office. She interned with me last year when she was finishing up her degree, and then we hired her right after she graduated."

_Fuck. _

"I'm not sure how I feel about this, Marcus. I trust your judgment, don't get me wrong, but she's a newbie. How much experience does she have?"

"I've had her working on your manuscripts with me for the past year and a half. You know I wouldn't give you to just any editor. Trust me when I tell you that she's good."

I had no choice but to trust Marcus. He'd never let me down before, and he was brutally honest. If he said she was good, then she was. Marcus gave me her cell number and email, telling me that Bella would be in touch with me within the next few days.

"I take it my deadline hasn't changed despite the circumstances?" I asked.

"Nope, but you'll send it to Bella instead of me. Oh, and son? She's a ball-breaker; doesn't take too well to tardiness, so get your shit in on time. Got it?"

I rolled my eyes even though he couldn't see me. "Got it."

I spent all day Tuesday and Wednesday writing my ass off. I was in a good place and the words were flowing. I loved it when that happened. I was in the middle of an extremely intense fight scene when the phone rang. I ignored it, but it kept ringing.

Snatching my cell from the desk, I barked, "What?"

"Well, hello to you, too," a feminine voice replied.

I scowled. I didn't have time to play games with people. I was on a fucking deadline. "Do I know you?"

"Bella Swan. Your new editor," she responded coolly.

I sat back with a sigh. I didn't want to talk to her at that moment.

"I won't keep you long; I know you're working. I just wanted to call and introduce myself. Marcus told me that he gave you my cell and email, so please feel free to email or call me with whatever questions or concerns that you might have."

"Right now, Ms. Swan, the only concern I have is meeting this deadline."

A little laugh came through the phone. "Well then, I'll let you get back to it. Have a nice day, Edward."

"Thanks, you too," I said before hanging up.

By Thursday morning, I was in a foul mood again. The last chapter I'd written was giving me problems and my characters were refusing to cooperate. I hated it when they did that. _Fuckers had a mind of their own. _

At eight forty-five, I pulled into a spot near the courthouse and met Jasper in the lobby. Heading up the stairs to the courtroom, I scowled when I saw Tanya and Yorkie. I hoped to hell that the judge would put an end to the money-hungry whore.

Thirty-three minutes later, the judge did what I wanted. The look on Tanya's face when she heard she wouldn't be getting any alimony was fucking hilarious. She was furious. Then the judge gave her a lecture on adultery. It took everything in me not to crack up, but I maintained a cool facade.

Once home, I got back to work and wrote straight through until the late hours of Friday night. I read over the chapters again, fixed a few things, and then sent it off to Bella Swan with a few minutes to spare. Then I crashed hard.

I woke up to my phone ringing. I reached over and grabbed it, not even looking to see who was on the other end.

"You fucking bastard! How could you do this to me?" I heard Tanya screech.

I hung up the phone and turned off the ringer knowing that I needed to change my number. I'd make it a priority over the weekend.

I fell back asleep and woke up around eleven, then climbed out of bed, hit up the shower, got dressed, and then headed out to the liquor store. Liquor was required at a Whitlock barbeque and it was my turn to buy.

Forty-five minutes later, I pulled into Jasper and Alice's driveway. The barbeque wouldn't start until two, but I always showed up early. I'd just grabbed the bag out of the back of my car when I heard a squeal coming from the backyard. _Alice must have started drinking early_. Walking around the side, I opened the gate and headed into the backyard where my eyes were almost burned out of their sockets. My sister and brother-in-law were going at it on the picnic table.

"Holy shit!" I yelled before slamming my eyes shut, but it was too late. I would forever have the image of my sister riding Jasper stuck in my brain.

"Oh, fuck! Sorry, man. We weren't expecting anyone 'til a bit later," Jasper stammered as I heard the rustling of clothes being thrown back on.

"I've learned my lesson. I'll be calling before I ever come over," I told them, eyes still squeezed shut.

"Okay, we're decent," my sister called out to me.

Slowly, I opened one eye, and seeing that they were indeed dressed, opened both eyes and handed her the bag of alcohol.

"I hope to God that you're going to scrub the table down before anyone sits there."

Alice rolled her eyes at me. "Of course."

But it wouldn't matter how much they scrubbed it down. I, for one, would never sit at that picnic table again. Ever.

I followed them inside where they ran upstairs to shower and change, and probably get it on again. I shuddered at the thought. Nobody wants to think about their baby sister having sex, and nobody ever wants to see it. _Ugh_. Ten minutes later, Jasper emerged down the stairs wearing a shit-eating grin. Oh, yeah. _They'd done it_.

Heading to the fridge, he opened it and tossed me a beer. I chugged that sucker down, needing the alcohol to numb my brain. We headed back outside and started up the grill. Moments later, Alice reappeared.

"How you doing, Ed?" she asked me as she began cleaning the table.

"Not too bad. Did Jas tell you about court?"

They both shook their heads. "I take attorney/client confidentiality seriously," he told me.

"Yeah, but she's my sister and your wife."

"Doesn't matter."

I'd always respected the guy, but right at that moment it grew a bit more. I knew it must kill him to not be able to talk to Alice about things, and I knew Alice was dying to know what was going on. Quickly, I filled her in on all the Tanya drama.

"She's such a skank! I'm so glad that you're finally getting rid of her. She wasn't good enough for you. You'll find someone better. Someone who loves you for you," she told me.

I let out a snort. Alice was a romantic. "Nah, I'm good. I'm done with women for a while."

Alice got a mysterious little smile on her face. "That's what you think. You'll fall in love sooner than you think."

I hated when she did that psychic shit. Okay, she wasn't really psychic, but sometimes she just knew things and it was freaky as fuck.

"Not happening, Miss Cleo. I'm just gonna focus on my writing. Speaking of which, Marcus is retiring. Left me with a newbie editor."

"What?"

"Yep. His doctor told him his heart couldn't take much more, so this past week was his last. He set me up with his former intern and apprentice. Her name's Bella Swan and she just graduated from college last year. He swears that she knows what she's doing. Guess, I'll find out."

"Bella Swan? She sounds pretty. Is she?" Alice asked.

"How would I know? Even if she is, so what?"

"Nothing," she sang as she finished wiping down the table and headed back inside.

_Oh, hell. _ The sprite was up to something. I loved my sister, but dear lord, she could be a bit much. She had way too much energy and was always bouncing around. Being a kidnergarten teacher suited her perfectly. She loved kids, and she had an endless amount of energy to deal with them. She'd be a terrific mom when the time came.

Later that evening, we learned that that time had come. Alice announced that she and Jasper were expecting. She was three months along, and they were ecstatic, as were our parents.

"Oh, I'm going to have a grandbaby!" Mom cried before hugging the shit out of Alice and Jasper.

Hugging my sister, I asked her how in the world she'd managed to keep quiet about it for three months.

"It was so fucking hard. I just wanted to scream at the top of my lungs, but a lot can happen in the first three months, so we wanted to wait and not tell everyone until we had passed that mark."

"Well, I'm extremely happy for the both of you. Uncle Edward is going to have fun buying all kinds of noisy toys," I told her with a grin.

"No! I forbid you to buy noisy toys."

My dad and I shared a grin. Yeah, we were so buying noisy toys.

By the time seven rolled around, I was beat. I said goodbye to everyone, gave my sister one last hug, then headed home. I suddenly noticed Tanya's car sitting opposite the entrance. _What now! Couldn't the bitch leave me alone? _ Scowling, I got out of my car and stalked over to hers only to find it empty. I'd taken her house keys from her when I'd kicked her out, so where the fuck was she? That was when I noticed that the garage door was slightly open. I'd totally forgotten to take the garage door opener from her. I quickly remedied that, yanking her car door open and took the opener which was sitting on her dash.

After retrieving the opener, I slipped into the garage and found the door from the garage to the kitchen open. I couldn't believe the nerve of her. Pulling out my phone, I dialed 911 and quietly told the operator that my house had been broken into. As much as I wanted to run in there and confront Tanya, I knew it would be much more comical to watch her ass get arrested. Hanging up the phone, I slipped back outside and waited by my car for the police to arrive.

Less than ten minutes later, Chief Charlie Swan pulled up in his cruiser. I'd known him my whole life. He and my dad were really good friends, and he was like a surrogate father to me. He'd taught me how to fish and busted my ass for underage drinking. He was divorced and had two kids. His son, Emmett, had lived with him while his daughter had lived with her mother, and he'd only seen her on holidays from what I had gathered. Emmett had followed in Charlie's footsteps and worked for the Port Angeles Police Department. I had no idea what his daughter did for a living, or where she was. He never really talked about her much. I had a feeling that they weren't very close.

"Tanya's car?" he asked me as he climbed out.

I nodded. "Yup. She got in through the garage. I don't know how long she's been in there, but it's been at least ten minutes since I called you guys. Lord only knows what she's taking or destroying."

Charlie shook his head. "Stay out here," he told me, pulling his gun from his holster.

I was doing my best not to crack up because he was going to scare the living shit out of her when he walked in with gun drawn. A few minutes later, I heard her scream and then Charlie was bringing her out in handcuffs.

"Would you like to press charges?" he asked as he shoved her in the back of his cruiser after reading her her Miranda Rights.

"Hell, yes."

He nodded. "I've called Mark to come out and take pictures of the damage. She destroyed your office, son. There's also a bag with a bunch of stuff in it. Mark's gonna have to log all of that into evidence and you'll get it back eventually."

_Fucking bitch was messing up my life_.

"Once Mark's done, come on down and we'll file an official complaint. Call Jasper while you're at it. Let him know what's going on."

"Will do, sir. Oh, did you hear? They're having themselves a baby," I said with a smirk.

A huge grin broke over Charlie's face. "That's great. I'll call them and congratulate them later. Oh, I hope their kid is just like Jasper was. Would serve the boy right."

I snickered at that thought. Jasper had caused Charlie so much grief during his teenage years.

Once Mark arrived, I followed him inside and swore when I saw the state of my office. The crazy bitch had torn the place apart. My laptop had been smashed with a hammer that she'd gotten from my toolbox. Copies of my books had been torn and shredded, and my heart broke when I saw them ruined.

Mark let out a whistle. "Jesus. I had no idea she was that crazy."

"Me either," I muttered as I tried to keep from crying. I was a grown man. Grown men didn't cry over torn books. But they were my books, _my babies_ that I'd worked so hard on. Taking a deep breath, I steadied myself and took another look around. She'd smashed my flashdrives as well as broken the shelf holding my many awards.

Walking out of the room, unable to bear seeing my office in ruins, I called Jasper.

"Hey, bro. What's up?"

I explained about the recent Tanya drama and what she'd done.

"I'm so ready for this to be over with, Jas. This bitch is pissing me off beyond belief. She destroyed my books, for crying out loud!"

Jasper understood how I felt about those books. I heard him swear softly and then I heard him murmuring to Alice, explaining what had happened.

"Oh, that bitch is gonna get it!" I heard Alice shout.

My sister was nothing if not loyal, and you didn't fuck with her brother. Many a girl had learned that lesson.

I spoke to Jasper for a few more minutes before heading downstairs. I found Mark taking items out of a duffle bag. Tanya had tried to take several pieces of good china, some cds, my iPad, and, oddly enough, some of my boxers. That creeped me out more than a little. After Mark had photographed, tagged, and bagged all the items, I followed him down to the station.

The police station was in a large building that housed not only the jail, but also the courthouse, and the coroner's office. One reason that we were seeing a judge in Port Angeles was because I knew the judge, and Yorkie had filed for a change of venue. It didn't matter to me where we got divorced, as long as we did it.

I walked into the jail behind Mark and smirked when I saw Tanya sitting on a metal bench behind bars. It was a good look for her. According to Mrs. Cope, the dispatch and secretary, Yorkie was on his way to talk to her.

Charlie led me back to his office where we went through the tedious process of filing charges against her. By the time we had finished, we could hear Tanya throwing a fit and yelling at someone. Turns out that someone was Yorkie. Apparently, he'd just told her that she'd have to stay in jail until Monday, when the judge would come in and determine whether she would get bail or not.

I let out a snicker and she turned her ire onto me, claiming that it was all my fault. I didn't bother to respond to her ludicrous statements. I returned home a while later and set about straightening up my office. It was then that my phone started ringing. Pulling it out of my pocket, I noticed that Bella Swan was calling.

I ignored the call, focusing on the rest of the mess still in front of me. Looking at the smashed flash drives on the floor, I was grateful that I always kept backups locked in my safe. Speaking of my safe, I turned to the picture hanging on the wall. Removing it, I opened the safe behind it and breathed a sigh of relief when I saw that the contents were still intact. I was positive that Tanya knew about the safe, but she hadn't known the combination, so maybe that was why she hadn't bothered with it. Regardless, I was glad that my stuff was safe.

My phone rang again, and I noticed Ms. Swan was calling again. I stared at the phone for a minute. Swan, like Chief Swan. I briefly wondered if perhaps Charlie was related to Bella Swan, but shook it off. I mean, what would the odds be? The phone in my hand kept ringing, so I finally answered.

"Yes?" I growled out.

"Are you always this foul tempered?" she asked in a cold voice.

"At the moment, yes."

"Tough. I had a few questions that I needed to ask about the chapters that I received," she began.

"Look, Ms. Swan," I interrupted. "Now is not a good time."

"When would be?"

_How about never, _I thought. "Can we do this on Monday?"

"I suppose," she said, sounding disapproving. "I was hoping to get this issue rectified before then."

Issue? What fucking issue? "Explain!" I barked out.

She let out a heavy sigh. "Chapter thirty has so many problems with it. Your writing is off, your characters don't seem themselves, and you brought back a character that you had killed. It seemed as if your head and heart weren't in it."

_Oh, fuck me. _ I really didn't want to deal with her at that moment. "Look, Ms. Swan, I don't know if Marcus informed you or not, but I'm in the middle of a nasty divorce. I came home from my sister's house today to find that the fucking woman I'm divorcing had broken into my house and destroyed my office. She smashed my laptop and destroyed my flash drives."

I heard a gasp from her end of the phone. "I'm so sorry. Marcus hadn't said anything, but that would certainly explain why this last chapter was a bit off. Why don't we leave this? We'll discuss chapter thirty on Monday, and we'll move your deadline for the next five chapters back a bit."

"That would be great," I told her. I was surprised and relieved that she was willing to work with me. From what I'd gathered from Marcus, Bella Swan was a stickler for the rules and for deadlines.

"Okay. Well, I'll talk to you on Monday afternoon, around two. Is that okay?"

"Perfect."

We hung up, and I looked around the room before deciding that I would finish cleaning it up tomorrow. What I needed right now was a drink and a smoke. I headed over to the bar in my dining room, poured some bourbon and grabbed a pack of smokes. I only smoked when I was stressed, and holy shit was I stressed. I headed outside and plopped myself down on a chair on my patio.

Hopefully, Tanya's arrest would get my divorce granted more quickly. I hoped like hell that I'd have those divorce papers in my hand by the end of the week and then I'd be through with her forever. A niggling voice in the back of my head told me I would never be rid of her, but I ignored it.

Settling further into my chair, I closed my eyes, and tried to relax. It was surprisingly easier than I thought it would be. At some point, I must have fallen asleep because I woke up to birds singing and a beautiful sunrise. I hoped it was a sign of better things to come.

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a/n: So there it is. The first chapter of yet another story. Let me know what you thought.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Wow! I'm totally blown away by the response to the first chapter! I can't thank you all enough. I'm going to attempt to update every Wed or Thurs, but as we know, sometimes life gets in the way. **

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**More Than Life**

"Damn it, Bella! I've re-written this chapter fourteen fucking times! What more do you want from me?" I roared into the phone.

"I want you to send me something that isn't shit! This last chapter is garbage, Edward! Fix it and get it back to me by the end of the week!" she snarled before hanging up on me.

I glared at my phone before throwing it on my desk. I was in a foul mood and the last thing I needed was Bella's crap. I should've been in a good mood. My divorce from Tanya had been finalized a few days prior, a buyer for the house had been found, and I had moved into my new home. But I wasn't in a good mood. Why? Because I had fucking writer's block. I was on the last chapter of my novel and everything I wrote was shit.

I flung myself down on the cot that I had set up in the office of my new house. Groaning, I ran my hands over my face. Maybe I needed a break for a while. I'd been holed up in my office for two weeks, churning out page after page. Two weeks of writing, cursing, hair-tearing, drinking, and smoking. Taking a whiff of myself, I realized I smelled like a bar and probably looked like I'd been living in one.

Getting up, I headed toward the unfinished bathroom for a shower and a shave. When I emerged from the bathroom, I felt a bit more human. I walked back into my office, grabbed my phone, and headed downstairs. The kitchen was still being finished, as was the downstairs bathroom, and I'd discovered that I didn't mind working alongside the noise of hammers and saws. It was almost soothing.

Glancing at my phone, I noticed a missed call.

"Edward, dear. How are you?" my mom's sweet voice asked.

"Struggling with the last chapter," I told her.

"You need to take a break. Come have dinner at the house."

Like I could turn down a home-cooked meal? I told her I'd be there in a few.

I walked into my parents' house and found Charlie, Emmett, and his wife, Rosalie, there as well. After giving Rose a hug and Emmett a fist bump, we all sat down for dinner.

"How are things with your new editor going?" Dad asked while we were eating.

"Pretty good. She's tough, though. Won't let me get away with stuff that Marcus did."

"Good for her. She's got to be tough to keep you in line," Dad said with a smirk.

I rolled my eyes at him. The man thought he was funny, but he wasn't.

"Is she hot?" Emmett asked, ducking when Rose attempted to smack him.

"No idea."

"What's her name?"

I hesitated for a moment before saying, "Bella Swan."

Charlie's fork dropped from his hand and clattered against his plate. Emmett's eyes widened and his mouth formed an "O."

"Be—Bella? Isabella Swan?" Charlie asked.

I nodded, watching him carefully.

"Excuse me a minute," he said before he rushed out of the dining room.

I looked at Emmett and he appeared in shock.

"Em?" I asked cautiously.

He shook his head. "I need a moment."

I looked toward my parents for guidance, but they seemed just as shocked.

Finally, Emmett began to speak. "We haven't seen Bella in thirteen years. We used to meet up with her on holidays, but around the time she turned ten, she stopped visiting with us. I'm positive that Renee, our _mother, _had a hand in that."

I didn't know what to say. "I'm sorry, Em. I didn't know."

He waved my apology off. "Like you said, you didn't know. How does she sound?"

I opened my mouth to answer when Charlie walked back in. He didn't look good, but he told us he was fine, just shocked.

"She sounds good," I told them. "She's in New York and just graduated from college last year. According to Marcus, Bella was an intern with his office for a year and they hired her once she graduated. Then when he retired, he recommended that Bella be his replacement."

"That's good," Charlie said softly.

"Small world," I heard my mom murmur to my dad. Dad nodded before getting up to pour Charlie and Emmett a drink.

"Does she know that you live in Forks?" Charlie asked me after taking the tumbler of bourbon from my dad.

"I'm not sure. My bio just says that I live in Washington State. We don't tend to talk about personal things-mainly just my writing."

Charlie nodded sadly. It was almost as if he'd aged twenty years in the past half hour. And Emmett-the light had gone out of his eyes. He seemed just as sad and as lost as Charlie.

Dinner ended not much later, and I felt horrible as I watched them leave. I had a feeling that I'd just ruined their lives.

"Fuck," I muttered. Dad came up behind me and squeezed my shoulder. I turned to look at him.

"What do I do now?"

"Nothing," he said, a sad look on his face.

I scowled. "What do you mean nothing? Don't Charlie and Emmett deserve to know why she stopped seeing them?"

"Edward," Dad began with a sigh. "Whatever happened between them is their business. If Bella wanted to talk to Charlie or Emmett, she would. Leave it alone."

But I couldn't. I couldn't leave it alone. I'd known Charlie and Emmett most of my life, and it killed me to see them so upset. I wanted nothing more than to call Bella and demand to know why she had abandoned her father and brother. My phone was in my hand and my thumb hovered over the call button before I even realized it.

Sanity reared its head at the last minute, and I quickly locked my phone and shoved it in my pocket. Dad was right; it wasn't my business, but I was determined to find the answers one way or another.

* * *

The doorbell ringing broke through the bubble of silence I was in. Scowling, I shoved my chair back and headed down the hallway. I threw open the door and found Tanya standing on my porch.

I crossed my arms over my chest and glared at her. "What the fuck do you want?"

Tears shimmered in her eyes as her lower lip wobbled. "I miss you, Eddie!"

"Don't. Just don't. We're divorced, Tanya. Get the fuck over it. I have nothing to say to you that hasn't already been said. Come here again and I'll have you arrested," I told her, slamming the door in her face and locking it.

I was fucking pissed that the bitch had the nerve to show up at my new house and whine about how much she missed me. _Yeah, right._ She only missed my money.

"Eddie!" I heard her call out as I stomped my way back down the hallway. Refusing to acknowledge her again, I slammed my office door shut and threw myself back down on my chair.

"God fucking damn it! Stupid fucking bitch," I muttered as I stared at the blank document in front of me.

I was supposed to have the final chapter of my novel turned in to Bella by tomorrow, and I'd yet to write a fucking word that wasn't garbage. I hadn't been lying when I'd told her that I'd written in fourteen times. I was now starting on the sixteenth attempt, and it wasn't going so well. It shouldn't have been that hard. I typed the words "The End" onto the page and thought about just sending that to her.

Six pots of coffee, three packs of cigarettes, and half a bottle of whiskey later, I was done. I sat back in my chair and read over what I'd written. It was pretty fucking good. Not my best but certainly not my worst. I glanced over at the clock and saw that I had managed to finish with fifteen minutes to spare. Saving and copying the file, I attached it to an email and sent it off to Bella.

I had no doubt that she'd call me tomorrow and bitch about it, but at the moment, I couldn't care less. As I stood up and stretched, I realized that I was starving. The contractor had finally finished the kitchen so I made my way to the fridge. Opening it up, I stared into the vast emptiness. _Fuck._ There was nothing but a rotting orange inside. Slamming the door shut, I decided that a burger and a beer were in order. Taking my phone out of my pocket, I gave Jasper a call.

"Hey, Jas. Want to grab a burger and a beer at Dooley's?"

He let out a sigh. "Oh, man. I'd kill for a burger from Dooley's, but I can't. Alice is cooking."

I couldn't contain the bark of laughter that emerged. My sister was known for creating interesting dishes which usually didn't turn out so well.

"Have some sympathy, man. She's got some weird concoction in the oven. An okra casserole or something," he said, gagging slightly.

"Enjoy. I'll think of you while I'm scarfing down a double bacon cheeseburger, chased by a cold beer."

"Bastard."

I hung up, laughing. _Poor fool. _Grabbing my keys, I opened the door and walked out onto my porch. And then I stopped. _What the fuck? _Slowly, I walked down the steps and toward my car. My eyes narrowed as I took in the long scratches across the silver paint. They went from one end to the other. I let out a growl. There was no doubt in my mind that Tanya had done it.

Quickly, I called Charlie.

"Hey, Edward. What can I do for you, son?"

"You can have my ex-wife arrested for damage to personal property."

"What did she do?"

"She fucking keyed my car," I said, almost whimpering.

"Oh, hell. I'll be right over," Charlie said. He knew how much I loved my car.

Twenty minutes later, he pulled into my drive and got out. He looked tired and there was a sadness in his eyes that hadn't been there before I'd mentioned Bella's name.

He let out a low whistle when he saw the damage to the Volvo. "Jesus, Edward. You picked a real winner of an ex-wife."

I rubbed a hand over my face. "Tell me about it. She showed up yesterday, whining about how much she missed me. I slammed the door shut in her face."

Charlie shook his head. "Just be glad the two of you didn't have kids. It makes it that much worse. When Renee and I divorced, she took the kids to live with her in Phoenix. I was furious, but the judge agreed with her when she told him my job was too dangerous as a cop, and he granted her full custody."

I frowned, slightly confused. "But Emmett lived with you."

"Not until he was six. He came for a visit and didn't want to go back to Phoenix. It took a lot of arguing, but Renee finally agreed."

"What about Bella?" I asked as Charlie began to take some pictures of my car.

"Bella didn't like Forks, so I would always meet her somewhere else. California, Florida, or wherever. Around the time she turned ten, she wanted nothing to do with me. I have no doubt that Renee was behind it. Eventually, she stopped returning my calls, and I stopped trying."

"I'm sorry, Charlie."

He gave a shrug. "That's life, I guess. All right, Ed. I'll write up a complaint about the damage done to your car. I doubt we'll be able to prove that Tanya did it, but we'll certainly try. Don't forget to call your insurance and let them know."

I thanked him for coming out, then climbed in my car and headed to Dooley's bar. I desperately needed that beer.

I pulled into the parking lot and managed to find a spot near the door, which was a miracle in itself. Dooley's was always crowded, no matter what night of the week it was. The place had the best burgers I'd ever eaten, and everyone within fifty miles seemed to agree.

I made my way inside and found a small table at the back.

"Hey, Edward. What can I get you?" Asked Jonie, the cute blond waitress asked as she leaned against the table, giving me a view of her ample chest.

I flashed her a grin and watched as her eyes darkened. She flirted with me every time I came in, but I'd never flirted back. Unlike some people, I'd taken my marriage vows seriously.

"My usual," I told her.

"Anything else?" she purred, eyeing my ringless hand.

It was tempting. I hadn't gotten laid in forever, and Jonie was easy on the eyes.

"Nah, I'm good. Thanks."

"Sure," she said with a resigned sigh.

"Man, I'd have tapped that ass," said an unfamiliar voice on my right.

I looked over and saw a man with blond hair tied back in a ponytail.

"James Hunter," he said, holding out a hand.

"Edward," I replied, shaking it and quickly letting go.

If he noticed that I didn't give my last name, he didn't let on. I didn't have anything to say to him, so I fiddled with a napkin on the table.

"What's good here?" he asked.

I told him the burgers were fuck-awesome.

"Nice. Hey, sweetheart," he sneered to Jonie as she dropped off my beer, "I'll have a cheeseburger."

"Sure thing," Jonie said, rolling her eyes as she walked off.

The guy was irritating. He spent the next twenty minutes asking me question after question about myself and Forks. Something about him bothered me, so I kept my answers clipped. No need to give the guy a ton of info.

"Hey, babe!" he shouted to someone, and I watched as a tall redhead made her way over. She was generically pretty, but she reminded me a little too much of Tanya.

"Babe, this is Edward Cullen. Edward, my wife, Victoria."

I gave her a nod as it hit me that he had used my last name. The last name I hadn't given him. My eyes narrowed. It could be he was a fan, but I doubted it.

"Nice to meet you, Eddie," she said in a pathetic attempt at a seductive purr.

"It's Edward," I told her coldly.

The way she said Eddie was eerily familiar to the way Tanya had said it. Taking another glance at her, I realized that she looked sort of like Tanya, and that sent chills up my spine. Excusing myself, I went to the bar and paid my tab.

As I drove home, I racked my brain trying to remember if Tanya had a sister. I was positive she didn't have one, but that woman, Victoria, looked so much like Tanya. They had to be related.

* * *

Saturday afternoon, I was awoken by the sound of my phone ringing. I grabbed it and barked out a hello.

"Good afternoon to you, too," Bella's voice said.

Rolling onto my back, I scrubbed a hand over my face.

"Yeah, yeah," I muttered, feeling a bit of anger at her rolling toward the surface.

"I was calling to let you know that I got your email," she began as I interrupted her.

"Well seeing as how it didn't bounce back to me, I assumed you did," I snapped.

"What the hell is your problem, Cullen?"

"Nothing. Just—nothing."

"Well whatever is, get the hell over it. I was calling to tell you that I really liked the chapter. It was a great ending. Of course, there are some minor issues. You'll be getting the revisions soon. I want the them done and back to me by Monday."

"Monday? Are you fucking kidding me? Jesus, woman! Can't I have a fucking day off?"

"Originally, I was going to give you until the end of the week, but you pissed me off," she replied before hanging up on me.

Scowling, I tossed my phone back on the side table. _Fucking bitch. _

I rolled out of bed around three and made my way to my office. I brought up my email and found the email from Bella with the proposed changes. Angrily, I opened it and looked through the changes that she wanted made. As much as it galled me, she was right. The changes she suggested were brilliant. Not that I was going to let her know that.

Knowing that I wouldn't be able to get anything else done until I finished the revisions, I dove into them. Surprisingly, it didn't take as long as I thought and I was done by ten. I sent them off to her with a quick apology. My anger toward her had abated as the day wore on, and I realized that I'd been a total ass.

Moments after I'd sent the email, my phone rang. Glancing at it, I saw that Bella was calling.

"Hey," I said wearily.

"Hey. Thanks for getting that done so quickly. I'll print it off first thing Monday morning, and we'll get it ready to go."

"Okay. Look, Bella, I'm sorry. I was out of line today and had no right to be such an ass."

"You _were_ out of line. What is going on with you? Marcus raved about you from the minute I met him. He was always telling me how you weren't just a talented writer, but a nice guy as well. But I've yet to really see this nice guy side of you."

She was right. I hadn't really been nice to her. My mom would be ashamed of me.

"You're right. have tons of excuses if you'd like to hear them."

"Such as?"

I smiled as I sat back in my chair. "First, I was pissed at Marcus for retiring. I knew he needed to for his health, but I was furious that he was sticking me with a newbie. Secondly, I was dealing with a divorce and the ex-wife from hell."

"But you're divorced now, right?" she asked, her voice warm in my ear.

"Yeah, but that hasn't stopped the crazy bitch from coming around and harassing me. She fucking keyed my car yesterday! My beautiful baby is all scratched up. It's gonna cost me a pretty penny to get the paint fixed."

"What a bitch," I heard Bella murmur.

"She is that. My last excuse is that a good friend of mine is hurting." I paused for a moment, unsure of how to explain it, or even if I should. Finally, I decided to just put it out there and see what happened. "See, there's this guy who's been like a second father to me, and it turns out that I know his daughter. He hasn't seen or spoken to her in a long time, and he was shocked to find out that I know her. Now, he's upset and it's my fault because I brought up in the first place."

There was quiet on the end of the phone for a long time before she finally spoke. "I'm sorry that you've been having a rough time of it, but there was no reason to take it out on me."

"I know, and I'm truly sorry for that," I replied, noticing that she didn't even touch on the last excuse that I'd brought up. "You seem like a reasonable person, Bella. So let me ask you something."

"Okay," she said, sounding a bit weary.

"It goes back to my friend and his daughter. Would you let her know that you know her father or would you leave it alone?"

"I'd leave it alone. They obviously have reasons why they aren't talking," she said in a tense voice.

"But what if he doesn't know what went wrong? Don't you think he would deserve to know why she doesn't want to see or talk to him?" I pressed.

"I think it's none of your business," she snapped. "Leave things alone, Edward."

"But-"

"Leave. It. Alone. Do you think I'm stupid? That I wouldn't know you were talking about me and Charlie? I know you live in Forks. I'm not an idiot; I've done my homework. It's none of your fucking business what happened between me and Charlie, so back off!"

_Well, fuck._ That hadn't gone well. So much for trying to be subtle about it.

"He's my friend, Bella. Emmett, too. They were devastated to learn that you were my editor. They didn't even know what you do for a living!"

I heard her take a deep breath on the other end. "I will tell you one last time, Edward. Leave it alone, or you can find yourself a new editor."

"Fine," I said, backing off. "I won't bring it up again." At least, not for a while.

"Good. I'll contact you in a few weeks to let you know about your book tour schedule."

She hung up, and I sat there looking at my phone, feeling like even more of an ass. Dad was right. I should've left it alone. Not only were Charlie and Emmett sad and upset, but I'd gone and pissed Bella off again. Sighing, I ran my fingers through my hair. It looked like I owed her yet another apology.

Turning off my computer, I got up and headed to the living room to watch some TV. Sadly, there was nothing to watch on a Saturday night, and I quickly gave up. It was a little after eleven and the night was still young, so I figured I'd hit up the bar.

There were several bars in Forks, but Dooley's truly was the best place. There had a pool room in the back, and I found myself in the mood for a good game of pool. I was greeted by Jonie as I walked in the door.

"Just couldn't stay away, could you?" she asked me with a wink.

I just shook my head at her and made my way to the bar. After ordering a beer, I headed to the back room and found several guys from the local reservation hanging out.

"Ed! How goes it?" Jacob Black hollered to me over the music of Bad Company.

"Not too bad, man. You?" I asked as we gave each other a fist bump.

"I'm all right. Got engaged a couple of days ago."

"No shit? Congrats, man. How is the lovely Leah?"

"Hot as sin. And pregnant."

My jaw dropped. In all the years I'd known Jacob and Leah, that was the last thing I expected to hear. Leah wasn't exactly the maternal type.

"Holy shit, Black! I take it that's a good thing, by the grin on your face?"

"Yeah, it really is. Leah was scared shitless at first, but now it's all good. We're pretty happy about it, and Dad's over the fucking moon."

I let out a laugh. I'd bet he was. Billy Black had been bitching for years that by the time his kids made him a grandfather, he'd be too old to have fun with them.

"Well, I'm happy for you guys. Tell Leah I said 'congrats'."

"Will do. You up for a game?" he asked, making his way over to the open table.

"Hell yes."

The next few hours were spent getting my ass handed to me on the pool table. It wasn't that I was bad, more like I was shitfaced. By closing time, I was as drunk as a motherfucking skunk. Although, I wasn't sure what that meant, because honestly, did skunks get drunk?

"I don't think they do, Ed, but I could be wrong," Jacob answered.

I nodded. "Could be. I wonder what they would get drunk on?"

Jacob shook with laughter. "I don't know, man. Want me to call someone to come get you?"

"I can do it myself. I got fingers. They can push buttons on a phone."

"All right, then. I gotta head home or Leah will kick my ass. Come down to the rez sometime soon. We miss seeing your ugly face out there."

I told him I'd see him soon and watched as he stopped to talk to the bartender before leaving. Staring at my phone, I eventually managed to get the stupid lock to slide over. I didn't remember it being that difficult before. I scrolled up and down my contact list, fascinated by how fast it could slide before I realized I was supposed to be calling someone for a ride home.

I found the number I wanted and pushed the little green call button.

"Hello?" answered a soft, sexy, feminine voice.

* * *

**a/n: Thanks so much for reading! Let me know what you thought!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Sorry for the delay in getting this chapter up. I was on vacation and then there was a death in the family. Thank you all so much for reading and reviewing this story!**

* * *

"Bella!" I exclaimed loudly as she answered the phone.

I heard her pause on the other end before she asked, "Edward?"

"Listen, Bella. I just had to call you and apologize. I'm so very, very sorry."

"You called me at five in the morning to apologize?"

What? What was she talking about? It wasn't five in the morning. I frowned and looked down at my watch trying to read the little roman numerals.

"It's not five in the morning, it's only two."

I heard her let out a strangled sigh. "I'm in New York, Edward. I'm three hours ahead of you. It's five."

"Oh. Sorry. I'm sorry I keep upsetting you, and talking about Charlie and shit, and for calling you so early."

"Great. Thanks. Are you done apologizing now? I'd like to get back to sleep," she said in an irritated voice.

I made a face at the phone. I didn't get what her problem was. I'd apologized, hadn't I?

"Yeah, I'm done."

Before I could even say good night or whatever, she'd hung up on me. I stared at my phone in disbelief. I couldn't believe her! I'd called to apologize and she acted like a bitch. Scowling, I turned around when someone asked me I needed a ride home.

I looked up and saw that James guy with his Tanya look-alike wife. I really did need a ride home but even as drunk as I was, I knew it was a bad idea to get in a car with a stranger. I would know. I wrote about that kind of shit, and it never ended well.

"I'm good," I slurred as I turned my back on him and scrolled through my phone until I found Jasper's number.

"Ed, man, what the fuck?"

"I need a ride home."

"Oh, Jesus. You're fucking drunk, aren't you?" he asked sounding pissed.

"A bit."

He told me he'd be there soon and fifteen minutes later, I was being poured into his car. He looked pissed and I commented on it.

"Of course, I'm pissed. Dude, I was fucking asleep."

"Think of it as good practice for when that kid of yours shows up. You'll never get sleep then," I informed him, wisely.

"Which is why I want to enjoy my sleep now."

Soon, I was stumbling up the steps to my house and in the door. I managed to lock it before I face-dived onto my couch.

I woke up the next morning to someone pressing on my doorbell. Cursing, I made my way to the door, yanking it open with a scowl on my face.

"What?" I snarled.

My mom raised and eyebrow and said in a deadly voice, "Don't take that tone with me, young man."

Immediately, I apologized. If there was one person I didn't want to piss off, it was my mom.

"Go take a shower. You smell like you drowned in alcohol and when you come back down, you'd better have a better attitude."

Scowling, I stomped upstairs feeling like a scolded little kid. Ten minutes later, I made my way into the kitchen and found a platter of pancakes waiting for me. Through mouthfuls of food, I told my mom how awesome she was.

"Of course I am. I stopped by to see if you need anything for the house. I'm going to an estate sale in Seattle later," she explained.

"I could use some furniture for the living room and guest bedrooms," I told her.

She nodded. "Do you want to come with? Maybe get away from the house for a bit."

"Sounds good. Mind if we drop my car off at Rose's shop. She said she'd look at the scratches the she-devil left on it."

"What scratches?" Mom asked.

"I'm pretty sure Tanya keyed my car the other day."

Mom's eyes narrowed as she muttered something about ungrateful, spiteful, evil women under her breath.

* * *

"Edward! Look at this table. It would be perfect for your living room," Mom said, grabbing my arm and dragging me over to look at it.

It was a nice table so I told her to go ahead and get it. Her eyes lit up the second I gave her the go ahead to start haggling. She lived for it. Leaving her to do her thing, I wandered around until my eyes landed on an antique desk. It was gorgeous, and I needed it in my office.

As I turned to find my mom and let her know I'd found something else I wanted, I spotted a unwanted, yet familiar face in the crowd. Victoria Hunter. Hoping like hell that she hadn't spotted me, I quickly took off in the direction my mother had gone. I wasn't ashamed to admit that I was more than willing to hide behind my mother.

"Edward, honey. Did you find anything else you wanted?" Mom asked as I approached her.

I told her about the desk that I needed, all while keeping an eye out for Victoria.

"What's wrong?" Mom asked, putting her hands on my face.

I shook my head. "Nothing, it's noth—shit!" I exclaimed and turned my body around and ducked my head as Victoria looked my way.

"What in the world?" she asked.

"There's this creepy woman I met at Dooley's and she's here," I hissed out.

Mom tried to cover up a snicker and failed.

"It's not funny! She looks a lot like Tanya."

Mom instantly sobered up. "Where is she?"

"Like I'm gonna turn around and look? You can't miss her. She's has bright curly red hair," I muttered, still trying to stay hidden.

I saw Mom looking around from the corner of my eye and knew the minute she'd spotted her.

"Does Tanya have a sister?"

I shook my head no.

"Well, don't look now, but she's coming over here," she warned me.

_Fuck, fuck, fuck! _

"Eddie! Fancy meeting you here."

"It's Edward," I corrected, tersely.

"And who is this stunning woman?" Victoria asked, turning toward my mom.

"Esme Cullen," Mom replied cooly, looking Victoria over. "Edward's mother. Who are you?"

Victoria gave Mom a fake smile. "Victoria Hunter. I met Edward at Dooley's earlier this week."

"I see," my mother said, though I have no idea what she saw. "What brings you here, Victoria?"

"I heard about an estate sale going on and thought I'd see what they had. I love estate sales!"

"Hmmm," was Mom's reply.

"Is James here with you?" I asked.

Victoria shot me a look but shook her head no.

"Who is James?"

"Her husband," I explained.

Mom's eyes grew even colder. "Well, Victoria, it was nice meeting you, but we have to go."

Mom all but grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the building. The ride back was spent listening to my mom go on about people not respecting their marriages.

"You stay away from that woman! Something about her isn't right."

"No worries," I snorted. "I have no desire to be anywhere near her. She reminds me too much of Tanya."

"Yes she does and that has me worried. I have a bad feeling about that woman."

"Which one?"

"Both," she said.

* * *

Monday morning, I wondered about my house trying to decide what to do with my day. It was a horribly stormy day and according to the weather reports, we were in for a severe thunderstorm. Not that I minded.

I lazed about and was laid out on my couch with a beer and a book when the electricity went out. Sighing, I stood up and went in search of a flashlight. I found one in a drawer in the kitchen, but the batteries were dead. Figured. So, I went in search of some candles. That only took twenty minutes of fumbling around in the dark, using my phone as a flashlight until I had located them.

Once I had the candles strategically set about, I sat back down on the couch to read. Just as I reached an incredibly suspenseful part, my phone rang, scaring the crap out of me.

"Yeah?"

"Is your power out?" my sister asked.

"Yeah. Yours?"

"Yeah, and now I'm bored," she whined.

I rolled my eyes. A bored Alice was an annoying Alice. We talked for about thirty minutes before I told her I had to go.

"Go? Go where?"

"The bathroom," I lied, but it worked. It got her off the phone.

As I was about to lock my phone, I noticed a recent call that I'd made. _Oh, shit._ Apparently, I'd called Bella on Saturday night. I cringed, almost afraid to know what I'd said. My thumb hovered over her number before I pushed the green button. It looked like I needed to apologize yet again. I swore, I'd apologized more to Bella than to any other woman in my life.

"To what do I owe the honor, Edward? Calling to apologize to me some more?"

"Uh—yeah," I said, dropping my head into my hands. "I have a feeling I need to apologize for my call on Saturday night. I don't even remember making it, but my phone says otherwise. Just tell me that I wasn't overly rude."

"You called me at five in the morning my time to apologize to me."

I let out a breath, I hadn't realized that I'd been holding. That wasn't as bad as I'd imagined. I'd pictured myself calling her and demanding to know why she wouldn't talk to Charlie.

"I guess I owe you an apology for my ill-timed apologizes," I said, stretching back on the couch just as a loud clap of thunder shook the house.

"No, it's fine. I owe you an apology for being such a bitch when you called."

"Considering I don't even remember, it's fine."

"No, it's not. It was rude of me to hang up on you," she said, her voice soft.

"Let's just say we're even."

"Sounds good. Also sounds like it's storming out there," she said as more thunder rumbled.

"It is. I lost power about forty minutes ago."

We talked a bit about my book and my plans for a new series when she asked me a question that took me by surprise.

"How is Emmett?"

I was stunned. After her almost belligerent reaction to the last time that I'd brought up her father and brother, I didn't expect her to ask about them.

"He's doing good. He's a cop in Port Angeles and married to a woman who is so completely perfect for his crazy ass."

"He's married?" she asked, sounding stunned. "Does he have any kids?"

"Not yet. They want to a little while."

"What's his wife like?"

"Tough," I said on a laugh. "Rose doesn't put up with any of his shit."

There was a pause on her end. "Is he mean to her?"

I frowned trying to figure out where that question had come from. "No. He's so head over heels for her, it's not funny. They're completely in love with each other."

She let out a relieved sigh. "That's good. I was afraid that Emmett would grow up to be like Charlie."

I frowned, confused as to what she meant. "He did grow up to be a lot like Charlie. Why do you think Emmett followed in Charlie's footsteps and became a cop?"

"Charlie's still a cop?"

"Yeah, he's the chief of police."

"Un-fucking-believable," she muttered. "Why the hell would people elect him to be the chief?"

Now, I was starting to get angry. "Why the hell wouldn't they? He's an honorable man."

She let out a snort. "Oh, yeah. Real honorable, that one."

My eyes narrowed at her tone of voice. "How the hell would you know? You weren't ever around," I snapped.

"For good reason!" she shouted.

"Oh, really? And what reason would that be?"

"Wow, he's really got you snowed, doesn't he? Bet he acts all perfect, but I know all about him."

I thought back to what Emmett had said about his mother poisoning Bella's mind. It seemed that she'd done one hell of a job.

"Look, Bella. I don't know what your mother told you about Charlie, but I can guarantee it was a lie. If Charlie was this horrible person you believe him to be then why did your mother let Emmett go live with him?" I asked, determined to get to the bottom of things.

"Don't talk bad about my mother, Cullen!" she growled. "And she didn't _let_ Emmett live with Charlie. Charlie took him and refused to give him back."

I quickly realized that I was going to get nowhere with her, so I took a different tactic. "Look, why don't I give you Emmett's number and you can call him. Or I can give him yours. Talk to him for yourself. I know that he'd love to hear from you."

She seemed lost at the sudden change of topic and it was quite on her end of the phone before she finally agreed that I could give Emmett her number. We hung up right afterward and I sat staring at my phone, wondering what the hell I'd just done. I groaned as I realized that I'd probably just made things way worse. Our relationship was already strained and if I wanted to continue to work with her, I was going to have to let go of the fact that she and Charlie had their differences.

A loud jarring boom of thunder startled the shit out of me, and I jumped as the electricity came back on. Shaking my head at my own foolishness, I got up and headed into the kitchen. Opening up the cupboard, I grabbed a box of Captain Crunch and a bowl, when I saw a flash of something outside the kitchen window. Leaning closer, almost pressing my nose against the glass, I saw it again.

_What the fuck?! _Grabbing one of the candles, I made my way toward the backdoor which was at the opposite end of the kitchen. Slowly, I opened it and peeked my head out. The rain was coming down hard and heavy, and I could barely see in front of me. Gently closing the door behind me, I inched my way onto the back porch.

Within seconds, the wind blew the candle out and the only light I had was the frequent flashes of lightening. A little voice in the back of my head was warning me this was a bad idea. Ignoring it, I set the candle down and stepped off the porch into the torrential downpour. I was soaked through in a matter of seconds and my shoes made squishy sounds as they sunk into the muddy earth.

Another flash of lightening lit up my backyard and out of the corner of my eye, I saw it again. Except it wasn't an it. It was a person. It took everything I had not to let out a scream worthy of a stupid girl in a horror movie. I whirled around, but the person was gone. I placed a hand over my racing heart and ordered myself to breath.

A few deep breaths later, I'd decided that it was a figment of my imagination. I chalked it up to working too hard and letting the storm get the best of me. I headed up the steps and went to open the door only to find it locked.

I let out a growl as I tugged on the doorknob willing the fucking thing to open. It hadn't been locked when I'd walked out; of that I was positive. I knew for a fact the front door was locked and my phone was lying on the coffee table.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck!" I screamed into the storm.

Pushing my wet hair out of my eyes, I headed around the house toward the driveway. I kept a spare car key in a little magnetic box under the front of the car in case I ever locked myself out of my car. Once I got that, I could head over to Mom and Dad's. Mom had a spare key for my house.

I was halfway to the driveway when I remembered that I didn't have my car. It was at Rosalie's shop. Letting out a string of curses, I couldn't help but think that the fucking universe was out to get me.

_What the fuck was I going to do? _I asked myself as I walked back around the house. As I walked by the living room windows, lightening lit up the sky and I saw that one of the windows cracked. I hadn't cracked the window, but at the moment that wasn't my concern. My concern was getting inside and warming up.

I pulled the window up enough for me to get through, then I had the fun of trying to hoist myself up and inside. It took a few tries, but I finally got it done. I ended up sprawled on my hardwood floors, water falling in through the open window. Getting up, I slammed the window shut and took a moment to get myself together.

Standing there, I felt a sense of unease as my mind flicked through everything that had happened over the past forty minutes. I'd seen someone outside in the storm, my backdoor ended up locked, and a window had been opened. My mind concluded that someone had broken into my house and locked me out, but who? More importantly, was the person still inside my house?

Of course they were. The person was probably hiding in a closet, waiting for me to walk by, where they would then leap out and stab me to death. That's what I would have a killer do. And then my mind came to a complete halt. I did have a killer do that in my book, _Hell Hath __No Fury_. Jane Alec, the female killer, had done exactly that. She'd broken into her ex-lover's home during a thunderstorm and had stabbed him forty-seven times.

I quickly told myself that wasn't the case. Tanya wasn't hiding in a closet waiting to kill me. I mean sure, you read sometimes about life imitating art, but that didn't happen that often. Right? Right.

Taking a deep breath, I kicked off my muddy and soaked shoes and socks before padding over to the coffee table to grab my phone. The phone that wasn't on the coffee table. It was on the arm of the couch, where I knew I hadn't left it. Quickly, I unlocked the phone and went to call 911 because someone had definitely been in my house. Of course, that was when I noticed that I had no cell service.

Things were going just great. I was trapped in my house with a psycho and no cell service during a severe storm. So, I didn't actually know if their was a psycho lying in wait for me, but it fit the theme.

Taking a few minutes to try and calm myself, I then headed toward the closet in the living room where I kept random crap, such as baseball bats. Armed with a metal one, I grabbed my phone and a candle and started making my way through the house.

Once I'd cleared the downstairs, I began to slowly make my way upstairs. The minute I hit the top step the lights came back on, effectively blinding me for a moment. Blinking to clear my eyes, I blew out the candle and set it down before resuming my search.

Cautiously, I opened my office door when I heard a door slam from downstairs. Racing down the stairs, I saw the front door was shut and locked, so I headed toward the back door. I found it shut but unlocked. There were wet footprints by the door and they weren't mine. Using my shirt, I locked the door before digging my phone out of my pocket. I checked for service and let out a relieved breath when I saw I had it.

Quickly, I dialed 911 and got Shelly Cope, the operator.

"911, what's your emergency?" she asked in a calm voice.

"Shelly, it's Edward Cullen. I've just had a break in," I told her, explaining what had happened.

"I'll send someone out as soon as possible. It's been crazy busy with the storm taking down power lines and causing accidents."

I thanked her and hung up, feeling better now that someone was on the way. Walking back into my living room, I grimaced at the mess that the open window as well as myself, had made. Rain and mud were all over the floor, and I was still dripping water all over it. Making the decision to change quickly, I raced upstairs, dried off and threw on a clean shirt and some sweatpants.

I made my way back downstairs and began the tedious process of waiting for someone to show up. Thankfully, I didn't have to wait too long. A ringing on the doorbell alerted me to the fact that someone had arrived.

I opened the door and found Mark DuPont, one of the deputies, on my doorstep.

"Hey, Mark."

"Edward. Had a break in?" he asked, in a gruff voice; the result of too many years of smoking.

"Yeah."

I explained what had happened and he did a search of my living room and kitchen for evidence and whatnot. Pulling out his camera, he took pictures of the footprints on the kitchen floor and the ones near the window.

"The ones near the window are most likely mine," I told him.

"There's more than one set. Are these your shoes?" he asked, pointing to my discarded loafers.

I nodded, watching as he turned them over and photographed the soles.

"So we can compare," he explained.

I sat back and let him do his thing, mentally recording every move he was making. When I'd been writing _Hell Hath No Fury_, I'd ridden along with a few cops out of Seattle and asked relentless questions. I'd even shadowed a Crime Scene Unit. It had been cool. Watching Mark though, I realized things were done quite differently in a small town.

We walked through the house together and the minute we stepped into my office, I knew someone had been in there. I pointed out that my papers had been rifled through and my laptop was open. I never left it open. I always shut it down and closed it. Mark made note of it, took some more pictures, then headed back downstairs and out onto my back porch.

"Unfortunately, this rain is gonna screw us up in getting any real evidence outside of the house. But, I'll come back once the rain's cleared a bit and take a look around outside," he said after an hour.

I agreed and walked him to the door, thanking him.

"No prob, Ed. Any idea who'd want to break in?" he asked on his way out.

"Just the ex."

He nodded and made a note of it in his little notebook. "We'll check her out. Have a good night, son."

I locked the door as soon as he left and vowed to get a security system installed asap. Knowing that there was no way I'd be able to sleep that night, I headed up to my office to grab my laptop. Laptop in hand, I went back downstairs and settled in on my couch.

I turned the laptop on, typed in the password, and brought up the history to see if any files had been rifled through. Sure enough, several folders had been opened and closed; most of them having to do with my books. Except for one of them. The folder was hidden inside of several other folders, and you'd have to really look for it. It contained information regarding my divorce and my will. Yes, I had a will partially drawn up. It wasn't complete, but my mother had insisted that I have one, despite my young age.

Looking at it closer, I noticed that my will had been copied. I frowned, knowing that I hadn't copied it. Hell, I rarely ever even thought about it. Immediately, I wrote down the date and time it had been copied as well as took a picture of it with my phone. First thing tomorrow, I'd be calling my attorney to let him know my computer had been compromised. Then, I'd go buy a new laptop and a get a security system installed.

I spent the rest of the night watching TV but constantly on guard. Every little noise had me paranoid, thinking that someone was coming back. It had been one hell of a night, and I hoped that I'd never have another one like it.

* * *

**a/n: Leave me a little somethin' somethin'.**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Sorry for the delay in getting this out to you all. I had a hard time writing this chapter, but it's finally done. Big thanks to Project Team Beta for the help with my lack of commas.**

**BTW, to the guest reviewer, thank you for for giving me a good laugh with your pointless comments left on 12/22/12. Please continue to do so. Really. I'd respond back to you but since you're hiding as a guest, I can't.**

* * *

It had been one hell of a fucking night. I hadn't gotten any sleep, and I was in a piss-poor mood as I poured myself my third cup of coffee in fifteen minutes. I checked the clock on the microwave once more, and seeing that it was nine, I pulled out my phone and gave my regular lawyer a call.

"Jenks," he barked into the phone.

"It's Cullen," I said by way of a greeting.

"Edward! How are you, son?" he asked, his tone changing..

"Been better. Listen, I wanted to let you know my laptop was broken into, and my will was accessed. So if you get any changes, they aren't from me."

"Of course, of course. If I do get any changes, I'll call you and let you know immediately," he said.

We talked for a few more minutes before hanging up. Once done with him, I called Charlie and asked him to recommend a good security company. He gave me the name of the company he used for his place and told me they were quite reliable.

"They're out of Port Angeles. Rose uses them for her shop and their house. Good men. Decent prices as well," he informed me.

I thanked him and began to make my third call of the day. After talking to a guy named Willie, I was informed they'd be out within the hour. Feeling a bit better, I thanked him and hung up.

Tossing my phone on the table, I surveyed the damage that had been done to my house. I hadn't been in the mood to clean it up yesterday but knew I needed to. I grabbed the mop from the kitchen and began to wipe up the mud that had been tracked throughout the house. An hour later, I was done and exhausted. I fucking hated cleaning.

Plopping down on the couch, I began to surf the Internet for a new computer when the doorbell rang. Getting up, I let the security guys in.

"You Cullen?" a middle-aged, balding man with a gut asked.

"Yeah."

"I'm Willie. That's Bob. We're gonna be installing your system."

Several hours and a headache later, the two men left and my house was secured. I quickly memorized the code they'd given me before shredding the document. I felt a lot safer now the security was installed.

* * *

On Tuesday afternoon, I had my baby back, and I'd never been so freaking happy. I'd missed her. Running my hands over the finished paint job, I had to give Rose props. She sure as hell knew what she was doing.

"Should I leave you two alone?" she asked as she watched me.

"Ha, ha. How would you feel if you went without your M6 for almost a week?" I asked.

Rose shuddered. "You have a point, pretty boy. Try not to let the crazy bitch attack your baby again."

"Yeah, no kidding. Hopefully the crazy bitch keeps her distance."

"Heard you had some trouble the other night," Rose commented, propping a hip up against the side of my car.

I did my best not to cringe as her dirty jumpsuit rubbed up against my car.

"Yeah. Someone broke in," I told her, quickly giving her all the details of what had happened.

She shook her head. "Man, that's some fucked up shit. By the way, Bella called Emmett."

"No shit," I said, almost unable to believe it. I hadn't honestly thought she would call him. I was kind of impressed.

"Yep."

"Did they talk?"

"Yeah. I know Emmett wants to talk to you about it, so if you want, you can head on over to our place. He's got the day off."

After paying the bill, I got in my car, sighing as she purred to life. A few minutes later, I was pulling into the Swans' drive. I knocked on the door, and Emmett hollered for me to come in. I found him sitting on the couch, in sweats, drinking a beer and eating nachos.

"Want one?" he asked, holding up his beer.

"Sure," I said, heading into the kitchen and grabbing one out of the fridge.

"So," I began as I sat down beside him on the couch. "Rose tells me that Bella called."

Em nodded as he pulled the label off of his beer but didn't say anything. I took a sip of my beer and waited him out. I knew he'd talk once he'd gathered his thoughts.

"It was awkward at best," he finally said.

"I'd imagine so."

He nodded. "I was shocked that she'd called. I think I was so shocked, and she was probably just feeling awkward, that neither of us really knew what to say. It was very strange talking to a stranger who's actually my sister."

He paused for a moment before speaking again. "She asked me a lot of questions about Dad. Wanted to know if he hurt me and stuff like that."

"When I talked to her, she asked if you were like Charlie. I said yeah, and she wanted to know if you were violent. Do you think that she thinks that Charlie was –"

"Abusive?" Emmett broke in. "Yeah, I think she does think that. Which means Renee told her he was."

"Why would she believe that?" I asked.

Em shrugged. "Why wouldn't she? She'd have no reason to believe her mother would lie to her. I had to set the record straight on the fact that not only was Dad not abusive, but that he didn't steal me away from Renee. Then I asked her to try and remember if Dad had ever hurt her."

"That would be a no, right?"

"Yeah. She told me she had a lot to think about, but she was glad she called and talked to me," he said quietly.

"Did you guys talk long?"

"Forty-five minutes or so. After we established that Dad had never abused me, we talked about safer things. Mainly, we just caught up on the past ten years. We exchanged email addresses, so I hope that we can talk more."

"I take it she doesn't want to talk to Charlie?"

"I don't think so. She's spent years believing he was an abuser. Hell, she still probably thinks that, but the fact she even called and talked to me makes me think perhaps we can get to know one another."

"Well, that's good."

I hung around with Emmett for a few hours before heading out. I still needed to buy a new computer, so I hit up the local Best Buy and got myself a top of the line Mac. It set me back a few grand, but it was worth it.

By the time I got home, it was after seven, and I was starving. I was too lazy to cook, so I ordered my usual jalapeno and pepperoni pizza from Maria's and eagerly waited for it. I killed the thirty-minute wait by setting up and goofing around on the new Mac.

Finally, my dinner arrived, and after paying the kid, I got down to eating. I had just taken a large bite of pizza when my phone rang.

"'ello," I said through a mouthful of goodness.

"Hello, Edward. It's Bella."

"I know."

"Oh, well . . . I was calling to let you know that 20th Century Fox has approached us, wanting to make _Hell Hath No Fury_ into a movie."

I wasn't all that surprised. I'd been hearing rumors for a while about that happening. Normally, my agent would be the one to let me know, but since I'd fired his ass a year ago, Marcus had taken over those duties as well as my editing. Unorthodox, I know. It sounded as if Marcus had passed on those extra duties to Bella as well.

"If they're serious about it, then I want to write the script."

"Really?" she asked, sounding surprised.

"Really. It's my story. I don't want some asshat fucking it up with their writing."

We talked for a while more, and she gave me the number and email for a Heidi Smith, the rep for 20th Century Fox. After I hung up the phone, I shot off a short email to Jane, letting her know the best time to contact me.

* * *

A month had passed since I'd last spoken to Bella. We'd communicated via email and voicemail, but we hadn't actually spoken. We'd both been busy. I was hard at work on my script while Bella was busy with other manuscripts and clients.

In the time that had passed, I hadn't give Victoria or James Hunter much thought. Why would I? It wasn't until I was drinking with Jasper at Dooley's one night that I even remembered they were around.

"Hey, Ed. What's wrong?" Jas asked.

"Huh?"

"What's wrong, man?"

I shook my head. "Nothing. Remember me telling you about that Victoria chick who looks like Tanya?"

He nodded.

"She's over at the bar with her husband. She's been eye-fucking me for the past few minutes," I told him with a shudder.

He glanced over my shoulder and then back at me.

"Are you sure she isn't related to Tanya?"

"I have no idea. As long as she keeps her distance, I don't really care."

"Well, don't look now," he said.

"Edward! Long time no see!" Victoria said as she and James walked over to us.

I shrugged my shoulders but didn't bother to respond. I had nothing to say to either of them.

"Jasper Whitlock," Jas said, holding out his hand.

"James Hunter. This is my lovely wife, Victoria," James said in a snooty tone.

"What brings you to the area?" I heard Jas ask as I excused myself to hit up the bathroom.

By the time I got back, the Hunters were gone, and Jas was looking smug.

"Got rid of 'em?" I asked as I sat down and picked up my beer.

"Yeah. I may have mentioned I was your lawyer and that I knew she was related to Tanya."

"But you don't."

"They didn't know that but seeing as how quickly they booked it out of here after I said that, it's a pretty good bet she is."

"Well, fuck! What the hell do they want?" I scowled.

"I don't, man, but I'll dig around and see what I can't find out about them."

"Thanks."

The following Saturday, I was hanging out with the family when I got a call from the security people.

"Mr. Cullen? This is Willie with P.A. Security. Are you at home?"

"No. Why?"

"The alarm just went off at your house. The police have been called and dispatched."

"Fuck!" I swore after I hung up.

"Language, Edward!"

I tugged at the strands of my hair as I muttered an apology.

"I've gotta go. The alarm went off at my house," I told them as I headed out the door.

"Be careful!" Mom hollered.

I waved in her direction and hauled ass to my car. I arrived home to find two police officers waiting for me: Charlie and a guy introduced as Mike Newton. Newton looked younger than I was, and if appearance was anything to go by, he wasn't much more than a bumbling idiot.

"Hey, Ed," Charlie said, looking a bit rough around the edges.

"Hey, Charlie."

"Good thing you got that security system installed or else they would have gotten in."

"What the fuck do I have that they want so badly?"

"I don't know, son."

Barney Fife came moseying back toward us. "Looks like they tried to get in through the back door."

"Did you get any fingerprints?" I asked.

"Uh . . ."

"I'll do it," Charlie muttered, grabbing a kit from the trunk of his car, and I followed him to the back of the house.

"Nothing," Charlie said with a sigh. "Kind of expected that. Well, now that the burglar knows that your house is armed, hopefully they won't come back."

"Yeah, one can hope."

After Charlie and Deputy Do-Right left, I settled in for the remainder of the day. I was getting sick and fucking tired of whoever was doing this. As I lay on the couch, watching a British crime show, it came to me: wasn't it a bit of a coincidence that James and Victoria Hunter showed back up around the same time my house was broken into?

I gave Charlie a call and let him know my suspicions.

"Who are these Hunters?"

Running a hand through my hair, I replied, "No idea, really. I met them at Dooley's right around the time Tanya and I divorced. Then I saw Victoria Hunter while I was at an estate sale in Seattle. They've been gone for about a month, and then Jas and I ran into them earlier this week. Jas said he was going to have someone look into them."

"Tell Jasper I'll do it. I haven't heard of any new people moving into the area."

"I don't think they're moving here. But I will let you know that Victoria looks a lot like Tanya. I think they must somehow be related."

"Has Tanya bothered you lately?" he asked.

"No."

"Hmm. Well, I'll see what I can find out."

A few days later, Charlie stopped over at the house. I was deep into the script and didn't hear the ringing of the doorbell.

"What?" I barked as I opened the door. "Sorry, Charlie. I was working."

He waved off my apology. "No worries, son. I have some information for you."

I gestured him in, offered him a cup of coffee, and then we sat down in the living room.

"Turns out you were right. Victoria is Tanya's cousin on her mother's side, and the Hunters have been staying with Tanya. She's got an apartment in Port Angeles. Did you know that?"

I shook my head. "No. I figured she'd have moved to Seattle or somewhere since she was always bitching about having to live in a small town."

"Hmmm. Well, I paid a visit to the Hunters. Told them there'd been a rash of break-ins and their time in town happened to coincide. Of course, they vehemently denied having anything to do with them, but something about that James guy puts me on edge."

"Yeah, something about him isn't right."

"Well," Charlie said with a sigh, "there wasn't much I could do since we don't have proof that they broke into your house. But keep an eye out."

"Will do. Thanks, Charlie."

He stood up to leave, then stopped and turned as he reached the door.

"Did Emmett tell you he talked to Bella?" he asked.

I nodded.

"I guess Renee was feeding her lies. Not that I'm surprised. Hurt, but not surprised. I'd like to talk to her at some point, but I don't think she'll want to speak with me."

"I'll put in a good word for you."

"Thanks, kid. I'll see you later."

After Charlie left, I sent off a quick email to Bella just letting her know how the script was going and that I was glad she had talked to Emmett.

A week passed before I heard back from Bella. Apparently, she'd been on vacation and hadn't bothered to check her email. I wasn't sure I bought it, but I let the excuse slide. We talked via IM for a while before my doorbell interrupted us.

_Brb. Someone's at the door._

_That's fine_, she replied. _I've gotta go anyway. Talk to you later._

_Cya_

Logging off, I jogged down the stairs and looked through the window. I didn't see anyone but opened the door anyway. I stepped out onto the porch with one hand still on the door handle. No way was I risking getting locked out of my house again. I took a quick look around and didn't see anything at first.

A second sweep of the area showed something lying on the steps. I stepped back inside, grabbed my keys, then went back out, shutting the door on my way. As I got closer to the steps, I smelled something horrible. Looking down them, I saw a dead opossum.

"Jesus fuck!" I said as I covered my mouth and nose with my hand.

It was fucking disgusting. The animal had obviously been dead for some time, judging by the flies that were buzzing around it. Trying not to gag, I headed back inside to call animal control and the police.

As I waited for them to arrive, I tried to keep myself busy with the script. I was thumbing through a section of my novel when I came across a scene that was eerily familiar.

_Jacob had just sat down to finish working on the deposition that was due Monday when the doorbell rang. Huffing out a sigh, he got up to open the door, hoping that it wasn't his crazy ex, Jane. Slowly, he opened the door and felt a bit of relief that she wasn't standing on the other side. As a matter of fact, no one was standing on the other side. There was, however, something on the stoop._

_Moving closer to it, he almost gagged when he saw it. A dead opossum that obviously been run over was lying there. Pinned to its fur was a note. Jacob knew better than to touch it, so he headed inside to call Detective Mason._

I felt as if someone had punched me in the chest. First an intruder, now a dead opossum. It was like someone was taking scenes from my book and using them against me. My first thought was Tanya, but the more I thought about it, the more I knew she would never touch a dead animal. Unless, of course, it was mink. But that James guy. I could see him doing something like that.

"Well, that bastard's dead," a gruff voice said from the porch, alerting me to the fact that animal control had arrived.

I opened the door and saw a couple of guys standing there.

"Hey," the skinny one said to me.

I nodded. "Think you can get rid of that quickly?" I asked, gesturing toward the opossum.

"No problem. I can't figure out how it got here though. It's been dead for quite some time."

I ran a hand over my face. "I'm fairly certain someone dumped it here to piss me off."

"Kids these days, huh?" the older guy said.

"Yeah, something like that."

As the guys began to bag the rodent, a Forks P.D. patrol car pulled up, and Mark got out. He walked over, looked at the animal, and made a face.

"Good God, Edward. Who the hell did you piss off?"

"No idea," I said as I told him what happened, and he took down notes. Of course, there wasn't much he could do but write it up so that it was on record. Figuring it couldn't hurt, I let him know that the dead animal on the porch was a scene from one of my books.

"You think someone's bringing your book to life?"

"I hope not seeing as how it was about a crazy killer."

His face paled a bit. "Got a copy of the book I can borrow?"

I invited him in, then ran up and grabbed another copy of it.

"Thanks," he said as I handed it to him. "Let's hope nothing else happens."

"No kidding. I don't feel like being murdered in my bed."

"That would suck."

"You think?"

Later that night, I was lying in bed, going over in my mind what had happened in my book. If someone was indeed acting out the book, I needed to be prepared. Jane Alec had been engaged to Jacob Green. They'd had a bad break up, and she'd started stalking him. Showing up at his place of work, his favorite haunts, even his mother's Sunday brunch. He'd gotten a restraining order against her, but it hadn't stopped her.

Over time, she'd gone crazy. She'd decided if she couldn't have him then no one could, and Jane took out anyone who got in her way. It had been a blast to write all those gory scenes, but I sure as hell hoped I wouldn't have to experience any of them.

If I remembered correctly, there was the break-in, the scratched car, the dead animal—oh, shit! I'd forgotten about the scratched car scene. Things were definitely adding up.

When none of that had gotten Jacob back, Jane had become more violent. She'd attacked his sister. Fear shot through me at the thought of someone harming my little sister— my pregnant little sister.

Telling myself I was overreacting, I managed to calm down. I'd talk to Jasper tomorrow and let him know my theory, so he could keep an eye on Alice. After much tossing and turning, I finally managed to fall asleep.

* * *

**a/n: As always, each review is appreciated! The next chapter is in the works, and there will be a bit of a time jump.**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Thank you all so much for reading and leaving reviews. I've been a total epic fail at responding to them, but please know that each and everyone is read! I'm so busy lately that I don't have a set schedule for this story and for that I apologize. I'll try not to let it go more than 2 weeks between updates.**

* * *

Three months had passed since the attempted break-in at my house, and there hadn't been any more incidents since. I think it had to do with the fact that James and Victoria Hunter had left the area shortly after being questioned.

I'd finished the script for _Hell Hath No Fury,_ and after a few changes were made, the production company had begun casting. It was surreal to think one of my books was going to be made into a movie. I just hoped they didn't have some crap-ass actor play the title role of Jacob Green.

Sitting at my desk, I checked my email and saw that Bella had contacted me. Opening the email, I quickly read over what she'd written. Over the course of the past three months, we'd become friends. We talked once a week, emailed several times a week, and I enjoyed talking to her. She and Emmett had also gotten closer. She still wouldn't talk to Charlie, which was her own decision. Em and I did our best to encourage her to talk to him, but so far she was digging her heels in.

**_To: __EC0620 _**

**_Subject: News_**

**_Hey, Edward,_**

**_Just got notice that __Scorned_ _will be released next month on the third. You know what that means. Book tour! Gotta run. Talk to you later._**

**_Bella_**

I was pleased at how quickly they'd gotten the book published, but I wasn't looking forward to the book tour. I sent Bella a quick email back, asking her to call me when she got the chance.

Shutting down my Mac, I got up and headed downstairs. I grabbed Stephen King's latest novel and settled myself down in one of the Adirondack chairs on the back porch. The man was a master writer, and I was quickly caught up in the story.

An hour later, my phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Edward," Bella's soft voice said.

I set the book down so I could focus my attention on her.

"How goes it?"

"I'm swamped. It's crazy over here. The stupid flu is making the rounds and taking everyone out. Now, I'm stuck with their work and mine."

"Sorry to hear that."

"Yeah, me too. Anyway, we need to go over your book tour schedule ,and you really need to hire another agent. I can't do your publicity crap as well as my other duties," she said with a bit of a huff.

"Yeah, yeah. Give me the names of some decent people and I'll meet with them," I said with a sigh. My last agent had been a total dick. He'd tag along on my book tours, run up huge hotel bar bills, and screwed anything in a skirt whether he picked her up in a bar or on a street corner.

"I'll get that list to you ASAP. As far as the book tour, looks like you'll be hitting New York, Boston, and D.C. Then, you'll have a stop in Chicago and St. Louis before hitting up San Diego, L.A., and finally ending in Seattle."

I could barely contain my groan. I really hated all the fucking traveling that tours entailed. I didn't mind traveling if I was going to be staying in one place for an extended amount of time, but spending a few hours in one place only to move to the next was exhausting. "Fine," I said, reluctantly.

"Try to smile and not be a total ass to your fans," she said, causing me to grin.

"Ha! Aren't you funny? I promise to play nice, but I swear, the first person to ask me to read their book …"

"You'll smile and say 'thank you, but I don't have time' or something to that affect. You'll not be an ass!"

I had to admit that feisty Bella was hot. I'd hunted her down on Facebook about a month ago, mainly because I was curious as to what she looked liked. Once I'd found her I requested to be her friend. Of course, I didn't have an account set up under Edward Cullen. That would be insane. Instead, I'd made a page under the name of Bill Denbrough, one of the main characters from Stephen King's _It._

As soon as Bella had figured out it was me and accepted my request, I'd gone stalker on her. I'd wanted to find out all I could about her; her interests, her relationship status, if she played all those fucking games on there. Okay, so I hadn't really stalked her, but I had been curious as to what she looked like. She didn't have many photos up, but the few I saw blew me away. She was stunning.

"Edward! Are you listening to me?" she asked.

"Huh?"

She let out a sigh on the other end. "I said that maybe when you're in New York we could meet up."

"Definitely," I said, unable to hide the grin that crossed my face.

"Okay, then. Well, I've got to run. Talk to you later."

"You bet."

I hung up the phone and tried to ignore the fact that talking to her had put a goofy grin on my face. It's not like I was falling for her or anything. How could I? I didn't really know her, and we'd never met. Besides, I'd sworn off women.

* * *

I scowled as the guy in front of me chose to drive exactly at the speed limit. I needed to get to the bakery to pick up the cake for Alice's baby shower and have it back to Mom's house by three. It was already twenty past two, and Mom had the cake made at some fancy bakery in Port Angeles. Finally, I was able to pass the asshole and swung into the parking lot of the bakery.

"I've got an order for pickup for Cullen," I barked out to the lady behind the counter.

"Just a moment," she said before heading into the back.

Moments later she came back with a huge sheet cake. I opened the box and barely held back a curse.

"The cake is for a baby shower, not a 50th wedding anniversary," I told the woman behind clenched teeth.

"I wonder if there was a mix up. Be right back," she said before she scuttled off to the back yet again.

I stood there tapping my foot impatiently.

"Edward?" a nasally voice said from behind me.

_Oh, fuck me. _ Really? Really? Like I didn't have enough to deal with at the moment. Maybe if I ignored her, she'd go away.

"Edward?" she asked again.

Huffing out an oath, I turned around and looked at Tanya. Her appearance had changed; someone had gotten some work done.

"What?" I snarked, unable to believe that she had the nerve to talk to me.

"How are you?"

"Fan-fucking-tastic," I replied, wishing to hell the woman behind the counter would hurry up and return.

Tanya gave me a pout and reached out to touch me. Immediately, I backed away.

"Aren't you going to ask how I am?"

"No," I said turning back toward the counter.

"I'm doing great. I met the most wonderful man. He treats me like a queen," she said as if I gave a damn. Maybe that's what she wanted. For me to get jealous or some shit.

I didn't bother to respond.

"We're going to be getting married in Rome at the end of March," she continued.

I tuned her out as the bakery lady finally came back with the correct cake. I shoved my Mastercard at her and headed out the door as soon as the cake was paid for. Unfortunately, Tanya followed me to my car. Carefully, I placed the cake on the floor of the backseat, and climbed behind the wheel.

I slammed the door shut, gunned the engine, and took off with Tanya standing on the sidewalk still talking. _Crazy bitch. Did she really think I gave a rat's ass what she was talking about?_

"Edward! You're late!" Mom hollered at me as I walked in my parents' front door.

"They fucked things up!" I hollered back.

"Don't use that language in my house. You know better," she admonished, taking the cake from me and setting it on the counter.

"Sorry," I mumbled.

Warm hands cupped my face, and I looked down at my mother.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

I shook my head. "It's nothing. I'm just in a foul mood."

"Hmph. Why don't you go home and relax? You're flight leaves early tomorrow, doesn't it?"

"Yeah," I said, grateful for the out she was giving me. As much as I loved my sister and as happy as I was for her, I so didn't want to sit around and watch her and her friends play stupid baby shower games.

I gave Jasper a smirk as I headed out the door, and he flipped me off.

"Fucker," he hissed.

I felt bad for the guy. I really did. He was going to have to endure hours of torture. At least Dad was there to keep him company. I'd always thought baby showers were a girly thing, but Mom had insisted that Jasper be there. As she pointed out, it was his kid, too.

Once home, I made sure that everything I needed was packed and placed my suitcase near the door. On more than one occasion, I'd left my suitcase at home in my hurry to get to the airport on time.

By nine, I was in bed and had checked the alarm several times. It was almost pointless to even go to bed. I needed to be up and out the door by two a.m. due to the airport wanting you to arrive two hours before your flight left. My plane was set to take off at seven, and Seattle was a good three hour drive away.

The blaring of my alarm woke me up, and I stumbled into the bathroom. Squinting at myself in the bathroom mirror, I decided to forgo shaving. Ten minutes later, I was showered and dressed. I grabbed my laptop and carry-on bag, got my suitcase, locked the house and was in the car by two-fifteen. Not too shabby.

After a quick stop at McDonald's for a large coffee, I hit up the 101. Thankfully, there wasn't much traffic on my way to Seattle. I got to the airport a little after five, parked in long-term parking, and headed toward my gate.

I figured after I checked in, I could nap for an hour or so but no such luck. There was a family of six in the terminal with me, and the kids were all bitching and screaming. I downed some Tylenol that cost me a small fortune and drank another two cups of over-priced coffee. Finally, my flight was called, and I was allowed to board.

As I settled into my seat and stowed my carry on underneath the seat, one of the stewardesses approached me.

"Good morning, sir. My name's Mandy. If you need anything, anything at all, don't hesitate to ask me," she said, practically shoving her cleavage in my face. While it was nice cleavage, I wasn't in the mood.

"Can I get a pillow and blanket?"

"Of course."

A little after seven, the plane took off, and I settled in for a nice nap. One of the things I loved about flying first class was that I could stretch my legs out. I wasn't a giant like Emmett, but I stood a couple inches over six feet and being cramped for long periods of time was no fun. It also helped that I paid for two seats so that I didn't have to deal with anyone sitting next to me. It was worth the price.

"Sir?" a voice asked me, waking me from my slumber.

"Yeah?"

"We'll be landing in a few minutes. I'll need you to return your seat to its upright position and put your seatbelt on."

"'kay," I mumbled as I did what she asked.

Stretching and wiping the sleep from my eyes, I opened the window shutter and looked down to see New York. I loved New York and tried to get there a few times a year. It wasn't a place I'd ever want to live in, but it was a great place to visit.

Once I'd grabbed my luggage from baggage claim, I made my way out the doors of JFK and saw a guy holding a sign with my name.

"I'm Edward Cullen," I told the guy and handed him my bags.

"Where to?" he asked me as I got settled in the backseat.

"The Ritz-Carlton Central Park."

"Very good, sir."

I watched out the window as the city flew by. There were always so many people wandering about. I shook my head, amazed at it all.

We pulled up in front of the Ritz-Carlton, I tipped the driver, and headed in with my bags. I gave the clerk my name, and moments later, I had the key to my room in my hand.

"Oh, Mr. Cullen, sir? I have a message for you from a Bella Swan."

"Thanks," I said as I took the note from her.

I opened it in the elevator and read, _Welcome to the Big Apple__! Give me a call when you get in. _Grinning, I tucked the letter into my back pocket and got out on the top floor. I was booked into one of the Parkview Suites; a room I'd stayed in before. It was lavish and a bit more than I really needed, but I certainly wasn't going to complain.

Inside the suite, I tossed my bags on the couch in the living room and headed toward the bathroom. I needed to piss and hadn't wanted to use the airport bathroom. Once done, I headed into the bedroom and flopped down on the king bed. Oh, man. I really needed to get one of those for my house.

As I lay on the bed, I pulled out my phone and gave Bella a call. I got her voicemail, so I left her a message letting her know that I'd arrived. Rolling over, I noticed that it was a little before four. I was starving, but I figured that Bella and I could do dinner, so I opted for heading out and grabbing a dog from one of the street vendors.

I was munching down on a dog covered in mustard, relish, and onions when my phone rang.

"Hey, Bella," I said with a grin.

"Hi, Edward. Sorry I missed your call. I was in a meeting. Did you get settled in okay?"

"Yep. Just stepped out to grab a snack. I was starving!"

She let out a little laugh. "Want to do dinner tonight or are you too tired?"

"Dinner sounds good. Where are we eating?"

"No idea. What are you in the mood for?"

I thought about it for a moment. I really didn't want to eat at some fancy restaurant. "No idea. Some place casual."

She let out what sounded like a sigh of relief. "Excellent. I was afraid you'd want to hit up some fancy five-star place."

I let out a snort. "I'm a down-home kinda guy for the most part."

Moments later, she rattled off an address and told me to meet her there at seven. We talked a bit more before she had to leave for another meeting. I figured since I was already out, I'd take a stroll through Central Park.

I found a bench near one of the ponds and sat and watched people come and go. I pulled out a small battered notebook that I carried around and began to take notes. There was a young guy playing a saxophone nearby, and every once in a while, someone would stop and toss a few coins or a buck in a hat near him.

Across the way, a handful of children were running around chasing the geese and roaring with laughter. It was only a matter of time 'til one of those geese fought back, I thought with a shake of my head, and those fuckers were mean.

An old woman pushing a grocery cart along the grass caught my eye as she passed. Her cart was filled with stuff. There was no telling how old she really was, but her face was worn and haggard.

Glancing at my watch, I realized that I'd been out there longer than I thought. It was almost six, so I rushed back to the hotel, showered and changed into a nice pair of jeans and a button down shirt. I didn't even bother to try and fix my hair. There wasn't any point. It did whatever it wanted.

Around six-fifteen, I caught a cab to the address that Bella had given me. I was a bit puzzled when the cab pulled into a neighborhood but thought perhaps there was a local diner where Bella wanted to eat.

Moments later, the cab stopped in front of a large apartment building and Bella was waiting on the stoop. She was wearing some kind of flowery dress, and her long hair was hanging loose. She was even more stunning in person.

"Welcome to Chez Bella," she said with a grin as I got out.

I kinda wished I'd thought to bring flowers or something. Not that we were on a date or anything. I didn't date.

I crossed over to her and debated for a moment whether to shake her hand or hug her. She made the decision for me. Wrapping her arms around me, she gave me a gentle squeeze and said, "It's wonderful to meet you in person."

"Same here," I told her, returning the hug.

"I figured after a day of traveling that you might want to have a nice home-cooked meal. That okay with you?"

"Sounds great," I said, relieved that we weren't actually going anywhere.

"Good. Come on up," she said with a smile.

I followed her up several flights of stairs, my gaze on her ass the whole time. It was a nice ass, and I found myself wanting to grab a hold of it.

"Well, this is me," she said and unlocked the door and ushered me in.

Like most apartments in New York, it was tiny, but it was nicely furnished and spotless. The sound of the door closing made me realize that we were alone in her apartment.

"It's not much," she said, "but it's home. Dinner will be ready in about fifteen minutes. Do you want something to drink? I've got Coke, wine and beer."

"A beer would be great," I said as I sat down on the couch.

She came back into the living room, handed me my beer, and sat down on a chair next to the couch.

"It really is wonderful to finally meet you. I know that we've talked for a while, but it's not quite the same, you know?"

"It's wonderful to meet you as well, and I totally get what you're saying."

"I thought for sure I'd be really nervous meeting you, but I'm really not," she rambled. "Well, okay, I'm a bit nervous, but not really."

I hid my smile behind my beer. She was fucking cute.

"Anyway … crap! I forgot the garlic bread!" she said, jumping up and dashing into the kitchen.

I set my beer down on the coffee table and followed her into the kitchen. She was rushing around the small space, slicing bread, and grabbing ingredients from the fridge and cupboards. I just stood in the doorway and watched. The woman in front of me was a far cry from the ballsy woman who had no qualms telling me my shit sucked.

"Bella?"

"Yeah?" she asked, pushing her hair from her face.

"Take a breath and calm down. It's just garlic bread."

Well, that did it. She turned to face me, eyes full of ire.

"Did you just tell me to calm down?" she hissed.

I shrugged. "Yeah. No need to freak out about the garlic bread. I'm sure dinner will be delicious with or without it."

Standing toe to toe with me, she jabbed a finger into my chest. "Do not tell me to calm down, Edward! I'm perfectly calm."

I held my hands up in surrender but couldn't contain the grin that crossed my face.

"And just what are you grinning at?"

"You. You're cute when you're pissed."

"Oh, shut it!" she said with a huff before resuming the task of making garlic bread.

I felt a stirring in my chest as I watched her but did my best to ignore it. It wasn't like anything could happen. Not only did she live across the fucking country, but we worked together. That right there spelled disaster.

While she finished up in the kitchen, I took it upon myself to explore her place. Walking over to the bookshelf, I noticed she had all of my books and some of them looked worn and battered. I felt a sense of satisfaction knowing that she liked my books. Looking closer, I saw a few photos with Bella and a woman who I assumed was her mother.

"That's Renee, my mom," she said from behind me.

The woman didn't look like a happy person. In each of the photos she was glaring at the camera and kept herself apart from Bella.

"Oh, I brought some pictures for you courtesy of Emmett. I forgot to grab them. I'll make sure you get them before I head to Boston."

"He sent me pictures?"

I nodded. "Yeah. I think there are few from his wedding and just some other photos of him from his childhood."

She nodded, and for the first time since we'd come face to face, there was an awkward silence. The timer going off in the kitchen interrupted the silence, and Bella rushed off.

"Dinner's ready," she called to me.

I made my way into the kitchen and barely kept from drooling at the sight of the lasagna. She scooped up a healthy serving for me, and we sat down to eat.

"This is amazing!" I moaned through mouthful of food.

A blush stained her cheeks and I found myself enraptured by it.

"Thanks."

We talked about mundane things throughout dinner, and once we were finished, we settled in the living room, each with a glass of wine. I watched as she rolled the glass between her hands. She seemed lost in thought.

"Penny for your thoughts?" I asked.

She let out a snort. "My thoughts are worth far more than that. I was just-" she let out a sigh and set her glass down on the coffee table. "I was thinking about everything that you and Emmett have told me about Charlie and comparing it to everything that Renee told me."

I set my own glass down and angled myself to face her. She looked so confused and sad. I ached to reach out and comfort her but wouldn't allow myself to do it. "Bella, I swear to you that Charlie never laid a hand on Emmett. I can't honestly say if he ever hit your mother, but I highly doubt it. That's not who Charlie is."

"Then why would my mother say that he hit her?"

"I don't know. That's something that you'd have to ask her. All I can tell you is that Charlie misses you and wants to get to know you. He knows that you and Emmett have reconnected, and he's over the moon about it. He really hopes that you'll give him a chance."

"I-," she paused a moment. "I need to talk to Renee first."

"Okay, then," I said, before deciding that a change of subject was needed. "So, tell me Bella Swan, why did you want to become an editor?"

She gave me a smile. "Because I love to read and grammatical errors piss me off. Why did you want to become a writer?"

"I didn't. Not at first, anyway. I've always dabbled a bit in writing but never thought I was good enough to get published. Yet, here I am-bestselling author and script writer."

"I heard that they started the casting process."

"Yeah. I've got a bit of a say in who they cast, so it'll be interesting to see who they bring in to play Jacob."

Before we knew it, eleven o'clock had rolled around. I tried to keep the yawning at bay, but the day had finally caught up with me.

"I should go. I've got to be at the bookstore at ten, and I've been up since one this morning."

"Oh, I'm so sorry! I hadn't realized that it was so late."

I smiled at her. "It's okay. I've had a great time. Thanks so much for dinner."

She blushed again, charming me. "It was my pleasure. Let's try to catch up once more before you head to Boston."

"You bet. Don't let me forget to give you those pics."

She walked with me outside as we waited for the cab that I'd called. I couldn't resist reaching over and giving her a hug, thanking her again for dinner.

"Any time. I mean that," she said into my neck.

We pulled apart and it took everything I had not to grab her, haul her upstairs, and have my way with her.

"Night," I said as my cab arrived.

Tucked into my big ass bed, my thoughts centered on a beautiful brunette with large brown eyes. I felt myself start to stir the longer I thought about her, and soon, I'd taken myself in hand. It only took a few minutes before I was roaring out her name.

I got up and cleaned off before crawling back into bed. Something about Bella Swan called to me, and it was going to fucking kill me not being able to have her.

* * *

**a/n: A bit of a time jump, but I think it went well. Besides, they finally got to meet! Let me know what you thought!**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Sorry, for the wait. Thank you all so much for reading and reviewing. I've been a total fail at responding to reviews, but I do appreciate each and every one!**

* * *

I let out a scowl as the hotel phone rang. I'd had a restless night; dreams filled with images of Bella, Tanya, blood, and death.

"What?" I barked.

"Good morning, sir. This is your wake-up call."

"Yeah, whatever," I snarled as I slammed the phone down.

_Fucking hell_, I thought as I threw the covers off and stumbled into the bathroom. After my shower and a quick jerk off, I was feeling a little more awake. I wiped the fog off the mirror and figured I'd better shave. Once shaved and dressed, I headed out the door.

As I walked toward the elevator, I saw a fat, balding guy giving money to a skinny ass woman in the hallway. I held back a snicker. Only in New York would I see a guy booting a hooker out of his suite in broad daylight, and I had no doubt she was a hooker. Tight, revealing clothes, ten pounds of makeup, and she smelled like whiskey and sex as she got closer to me. It was a bit disgusting. Even more disgusting was the image of her doing the fat guy that planted itself in my brain.

As revolting as she was, it was one of the many things I loved about New York. You found such wonderful characters on its streets and in its hallways. Immediately, my brain took that nasty image, and conjured up a story scenario using the guy and the hooker. I could definitely work it into my next book.

I barely held back a groan as she entered the elevator with me. I was a bit surprised that she'd even been allowed in the hotel to tell the truth. The Ritz was an upscale place, and she was not an upscale girl.

"Hello," she purred, leaning in closer.

It took everything I had not to gag. I gave her a nod and randomly pushed a button on the elevator. There was no way I was going to be seen exiting with her in tow. The elevator stopped on the fifth floor, and I quickly escaped. I took the stairs the rest of the way down and headed outside to where the car that was called for me was waiting.

I slipped inside and settled in for the ride to Platt's, the bookstore where I'd be signing books. Platt's was a small bookstore chain that mainly had stores in the Northeast. It had originally been started by my great-grandfather on my mother's side, so when I first began doing tours, I made sure that Platt's was always on the list alongside the Barnes and Nobles.

The car pulled into an alleyway and my door was opened by Katie Platt, my second cousin fifteen times removed or some shit like that.

"Edward!" she cried out as she wrapped me in a hug.

"Hey, Katie," I said as I hugged her back.

"Come on in," she said leading the way. " We've got the table set up and a line of people out front eager to meet their favorite author."

I followed her in and could barely hold back a groan when I saw the sheer number of women waiting for me. Didn't any guys read my books? Not that I didn't appreciate the fact that these women read my books, but why was it always women who showed up to the signings?

The minute they spotted me a huge roar went up, and for a moment, I felt like a rock star. Hell, I was a fucking rock star in the literary world.

I sat down at the chair behind the table and told Katie I'd take a coffee when she asked if I needed anything.

"Coming right up. Remember, Edward. Smile and be polite," she warned.

"Yeah, yeah. You're not the first person that's told me that," I muttered as I picked up one of the pens laying on the table.

She let out a snort and went to get my coffee.

A few sips later, the flood gates opened and they descended upon me. The first woman in line was a tiny, elderly woman who looked to be pushing a hundred. With trembling hands, she handed me her book.

I gave her a smile and asked how she was.

"Wonderful! Just wonderful! I love your books! Read every one of them."

"I'm glad that you like them," I told her with genuine honesty. "Who am I making this out to?"

"Oh! Dottie," she told me, blushing a bit.

She was adorable, and I couldn't help grinning at her. "Dottie was my grandmother's name as well."

Three hours later, my hand was cramped, and I'd been offered everything from phone numbers to sexual favors. Needless to say, I was relieved to see that the end of the line was near. The last person was a young guy, probably high school age.

"I'm a huge fan, Mr. Cullen," he stammered out as he shoved his glasses up his nose.

He kind of reminded me of me when I was his age.

"Thanks. What's your name?"

"Colin. Colin Brady. I … uh, I want to be a writer like you some day," he blurted out, blushing a bit.

"No reason you can't be. Keep writing and don't give up," I told him as I signed his book.

He thanked me as he took his book back, and I sat back with a sigh and rolled my shoulders.

"Want some lunch? I'm buying," Katie said, coming over to me.

"Oh, yeah. I'm starving!"

Katie and I killed a few hours at a small bistro near the store. It was great catching up with her.

"So, got a new love interest?" she asked over a cup of coffee.

I shook my head, all the while lying to myself. "Nope. I've sworn off women."

She snorted. "Yeah, right. We'll see how long that lasts."

At quarter to four, we parted ways with a hug and promised to keep in touch. We said that every time and rarely followed through with it. I headed back to the hotel and figured I'd give Bella a call. I told myself it was just so I could give her Emmett's pictures, not because I wanted to see her. I let out a snort. I couldn't even lie convincingly to myself.

Once in my room, I plopped down on the couch and pulled out my phone.

"Hello?" answered a harried voice.

"Bella? It's Edward."

"Hey, Edward. Listen, I can't talk right now. Can I call you later?"

"Sure," I told her before we hung up.

With nothing else to do, I opened my laptop up and logged into my email. Nothing of importance, and I was about to delete the junk when something caught my eye. I had an email from someone calling him or herself Pennywise. I debated for a few minutes on whether or not to open it, before finally clicking on it.

**Pennywise**

**to me,**

**_Billy boy,_**

**_I'm every nightmare you've ever had. I'm your worst dream come true. I'm everything you ever were afraid of. _**

**_Love from Pennywise_**

I sat there, floored. Someone had figured out, not only my email address, but that my Facebook account was under Bill Denbrough. Granted, I'd given enough interviews where I'd let the world know that _IT_ was my favorite book and movie. Closing my email, I opened up my Facebook page, and sure enough, I had a friend request from Pennywise. Someone was fucking with me, and I didn't appreciate it. I deleted the friend request and not a few minutes later, it was back once more.

Scowling, I deleted it again and checked the box that said I didn't know the person. Sitting back, I ran my hands through my hair, tugging on the strands. I told myself it was nothing but some loser's idea of a fucking joke, but it pissed me off that I'd been found and was going to have to change my email address.

Volturi had an email account that I could use, but I'd never taken them up on it. I was about to, however. From now on, all emails would be sent to me there.

The ringing of the phone interrupted me, and I answered without looking at who it was.

"Want a balloon?" a mechanical voice asked.

_Oh, fuck me! _ The fucking bastard had gotten my cell number too!

"What the fuck do you want?" I snarled.

The voice let out a laugh. "Tsk, tsk. Such language is unbecoming."

"What. Do. You. Want?" I asked, punctuating each word.

"You hurt her," it said. "You hurt her, and now I'm going to hurt you."

"Listen, you sick fuck—" I began before the caller hung up.

Furious, I tossed my phone on the floor where it shattered.

"God fucking damn it!" I screamed.

Anger and rage welled up inside me, and I wanted to beat on something; to break something. It took a few minutes before I was able to calm myself down. I picked up my phone from the floor and quickly realized there was no way to fix it. The screen was shattered, and the fucking thing wouldn't turn on it.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck!"

Grabbing my laptop, I sent an email out from my new account, telling people to contact me at the hotel if I was needed because my phone was broken. Heaving a sigh, I sat back on the couch and wondered how my day had so quickly gone to hell.

A little after six, there was a knock on the door. Looking through the peephole, I saw Bella standing there. I opened the door and let her in, noticing that I immediately felt calmer upon seeing her.

She looked tired and a bit stressed, but I'd been around enough women to know better than to comment.

"How are you?" I asked as I lead her over to the couch.

"Pissed as hell. Our computer system went down at work and we lost a ton of shit. Our computer people are trying to recover stuff, but it's not looking too good."

"I'm sorry," I said_, _reaching out and lightly touching her shoulder.

"Me, too," she said. "I tried calling you before I left, but couldn't get through."

"Yeah," I said a bit sheepishly as I showed her my busted phone. "It had a bit of an accident."

She raised an eyebrow. "Did it fall off the balcony?"

"No, I kind of threw it," I mumbled, feeling slightly embarrassed.

"Seriously? You threw your phone with enough force to kill it?"

"Uh, yeah," I said, rubbing the back of my neck.

"Why?"

I explained the phone call that I had gotten, as well as the email. She looked stunned.

"Jesus, Edward! You need to call the cops!"

"I'll let Charlie know once I get a new phone," I told her.

She flinched slightly at Charlie's name ,and with the mood I was in, it pissed me off. I took a few deep breaths to calm myself before getting up to grab the pictures that I'd promised her.

"Here," I said, shoving the album at her.

"Thanks," she said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

I sat back down and watched as she slowly flipped through the pictures. She stopped on a picture of her family all together, and they looked happy. Charlie had his arm around Renee, while the kids were standing in front of them smiling. Bella traced a finger of the picture before turning to the next page.

Page after page were filled with pictures of Bella with Charlie, Renee with Charlie, Emmett with Charlie. In none of the pictures, did anyone look unhappy until she came to a picture of Charlie and Emmett. Judging by Emmett's age, it must have been taken not too long after the divorce.

Charlie was giving the camera a small smile, but it didn't reach his eyes. You could tell that he wasn't happy.

"He looks so sad," Bella said, interrupting the silence.

"I think it was taken not too long after the divorce," I told her. There was silence for a moment, and then I asked, "Did you get a chance to talk to your mother?"

She shook her head. "I called and left a message, telling her I needed to speak with her, but she hasn't gotten back to me. Chances are she won't, and I'll have to call her again."

We spent the remainder of the evening looking through the pictures and laughing at some of the ridiculous ones that Emmett had put in there.

Closing the album, she angled herself toward me on the couch. "I probably won't get a chance to see you again before you leave. With everything going on at work, the next few days are going to be a nightmare."

Pain bloomed in my chest at the thought of not seeing her, but I did my best to ignore it.

"We'll keep in touch. Maybe you could come visit me after I'm back from my book tour?"

A blush raced up her cheeks as she looked at me. "I'd like that."

When she said she needed to head home, I walked with her downstairs and helped her catch a cab.

"Call me when you get a new phone," she said as she opened the door.

"You bet," I replied before I pulled her in for a hug. She seemed a bit shocked for a moment, then returned the hug and planted a kiss on my cheek. I shut the door once she was in and watched as the cab pulled away from the curb.

As I walked back inside, I realized that I had fallen for Isabella Swan, and I'd fallen hard.

"Fuck," I muttered to myself.

* * *

The weeks flew by, and once I arrived in Chicago, I was more than ready for the tour to be done. I missed my house and my family. I was a horrible traveler. I tended to get homesick after being gone for a few days. I knew it made me sound like a bit of a pussy, but whatever.

After checking into my room, I pulled out my new phone and saw that I had a text from my mom asking me to call her. Doing just that, I waited impatiently for her to answer the phone.

"Edward, sweetie! Oh, how I miss you, my dear boy! How are you?"

"Tired and cranky. I'm ready to be done with it all," I whined.

She let out a laugh that sounded a bit forced to me.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"Nothing," she replied too quickly.

"Mom," I growled.

She let out a sigh. "Someone left a note on Alice's car the other day."

"What?! What kind of note?"

"A threatening one," she told me in a small voice.

"Jesus ,fuck! When I find out whoever this fucking bastard is, he's a fucking dead man!" I roared.

"Edward! Calm down right this minute! This is why I didn't want to say anything. You get so upset and blow things out of proportion."

"Well excuse me, but someone is threatening my baby sister. I'm allowed to be upset."

"We called Charlie, and he's looking into it. Alice is perfectly safe."

"We don't know that. For all we know, this crazy guy is lurking around to get Alice on her own, and then he'll hurt her," I said, my mind whirling at the possibility of someone hurting my sister.

Mom let out a huff. "I just told you that your sister is safe. Do you really think we'd let something bad happen to her or the baby?"

"Well, no. But—"

"But nothing. Now, the reason I sent you a text is because I wanted to know if you could pick something up for me while you're in Chicago."

"I … what?" I asked, confused by the change of subject.

"I need you to stop by cousin Kathy's house. She has a blanket that your Grandma Platt quilted, and I want to give it to Alice for the baby."

"Huh? You want me to stop by cousin Kathy's? She's crazy!"

"She's not crazy, Edward. She's just … unique."

"She keeps photo albums of her ferrets in her purse!" I cried out.

"Please, Edward. It's not like I'm asking you to spend the day with her. Just go and get the quilt."

"Oh, yeah, right. Like she's just going to let me go in ,grab the quilt, and leave. You know as well as I do that she'll trap me there and force me to have tea with her and her six thousand ferrets." I scoffed.

"She doesn't have six thousand ferrets. And you will do this if you want me to make my turtle cheesecake when you get home."

My eyes narrowed. "You play dirty, Mom."

"Thanks, sweetie! Love you, and I'll see you when you get home!" she said before hanging up.

Staring at my phone, I couldn't believe that my mother had just played me. Figuring I might as well get the torture over with, I headed out and grabbed a cab.

Kathy lived in a tiny house near the red-line train, and I cringed as I saw the state that it was in. It looked like a crack house. A new paint job was a must, and the concrete steps leading up the porch were cracked. As much as Kathy annoyed me, I hated seeing her live in such a place. I had offered to buy her house, but she'd refused, telling me that she had a house and wasn't moving.

As I climbed up the steps, I made a mental note to have someone come out and fix the place up a bit.

I knocked on the door and waited for someone to answer. Checking my watch, I saw that it was a little after eleven. Kathy didn't have a job or a car, so she should have been there.

"Kathy! It's Edward!" I hollered as I knocked again.

"I don't think she's home," an brittle voice said from behind me.

I turned around and found an elderly man standing on the sidewalk.

"Did she go somewhere?"

He shrugged. "Haven't seen her in days. Normally, I see her walking those rat things she has, but I ain't seen her lately." He shrugged again before heading down the sidewalk.

I tried not to panic. I knocked on the door again, then grabbed the key that was hidden above the door. I had bitched to her last time I was here that leaving a key hidden wasn't the smartest of ideas. At the moment, however, I was grateful it was still there. Unlocking the door, I was hit with a horrible stench. Pulling my shirt over my nose, I slowly inched my way inside.

"Kathy!" I hollered as I skirted around the furniture crammed into the living room.

Apparently, Kathy had taken up hoarding at some point because the place was packed with stuff. I heard a scurrying noise and looked down to see several ferrets staring at me. _Creepy fuckers! _ They began making some strange noises and followed me as I moved from room to room, calling out Kathy's name.

I headed upstairs, almost tripping over another ferret, and the stench became overwhelming. It took everything I had not to puke. I pushed my way into her bedroom, and what I saw would stay with me for the rest of my life.

"Jesus Christ!" I managed to get out before I had to rush to the bathroom. Everything in my stomach came up.

Once there was nothing left in my stomach, I flushed the toilet, rinsed out my mouth, and called 911.

"911. What's your emergency?" a female voice asked.

"My—" I had to take a breath to calm myself. "My cousin's dead. I came to visit her and found her body in the bedroom. She's, oh God, she's dead!"

"Sir. I need you to remain calm. What's your location?"

I gave her Kathy's address and managed to make my way downstairs to wait for the police.

Thirty minutes later, I watched as policemen and people from the coroner's office headed upstairs.

"Sir? Can I have a moment of your time?"

I looked up at the police officer talking to me. "Yeah, sure."

"What's your name?"

"Edward Cullen. Kathy's my second cousin. My mom asked me to stop by while I was in town. She wanted me to get a quilt that my grandmother had made."

"Did your cousin have a husband? Children?"

I shook my head and explained that she lived alone with her ferrets.

"Did she have any enemies?"

I looked at him sharply. "Of course not. Kathy might have been a bit eccentric, but she didn't have enemies. Why?"

The officer ran a hand through his hair. "Ms. Platt was murdered."

I had known that, but the statement still didn't stop the shock that hit me when he said it. The officer excused himself to talk to another officer, then came back with a plastic bag in his hand.

"Does this note mean anything to you?" he asked, handing me Ziplock bag.

With trembling hands, I took the bag from him and read the note.

_He hurt her. Now __I'll hurt him._

My stomach rolled.

"Yeah, it does. I got a phone call last week that said something about how I hurt her and now I was going to be hurt."

"Explain."

So I did. I told the officer about my house being broken into, about the dead animal, the email, the phone call, and the note left on my sister's car.

"Charlie Swan is in charge of the case back in Forks, Washington," I told him.

Finally free to go, I headed back to the hotel and tried not to think about what I'd seen. There'd been so much blood. It had been everywhere: on the bed, the floor, the walls.

I barely remembered getting out of the cab and into my room. I sat on the edge of the bed and stared at my phone. I was going to have to call my mom and tell her.

"Edward? Did you get the quilt?" she asked after she answered.

"Um … Mom?"

"What is it? What's wrong?"

I took a deep breath. "Kat—Kathy's dead. She—she was murdered," I blurted out as the tears welled up. "There was a note at the scene, like the one I got in my email. It's my fault, Mom!"

I could hear her sobs on the other end.

"Sweetie, this isn't your fault! I mean it, Edward! It's not your fault!"

"But, it is! It has something to do with me. We both know that."

"Edward Anthony Cullen, you listen to me! The only person who is at fault is the person who did this. Understand?"

I nodded even though she couldn't see me. "Yeah," I said softly.

After I was done talking to my mom, I lay back on the bed. Everything was so fucked up, and it had all started with Tanya. Somehow, she had been in on all of this. The notes and email said that I hurt "her." The only "her" I had hurt would've been Tanya.

My thoughts were interrupted by the ringing of my phone. Checking to see who was calling, I saw that it was Bella.

"Hey, Bella," I said in a quiet voice.

"Edward," her voice whimpered out.

Immediately, I sat up. Something was wrong.

"Bella? What's wrong? Talk to me."

"I—"

"Give me the phone you fucking bitch!" a male voice shouted before the phone went dead.

"No!" I screamed. "Bella! Bella!"

I immediately called her back, but her phone went straight to voicemail. Panicking, I called Charlie.

"Edward!"

"Someone has Bella! Someone took her or something!"

"What? Edward, you need to calm down son!"

"Charlie, someone took her. She called me, and she sounded scared. She was going to say something, and I heard some guy call her a bitch, and then her phone went dead."

I heard Charlie take a sharp breath. "I've got a friend on the NYPD force. I'll give him a call and have him check on Bella. I need her address."

I rambled off her address and phone number as well as her place of work. Charlie told me he'd call me and let me know what was going on as soon as he heard anything. I sat there, numb, and then the tears began to fall.

* * *

**a/n: dun, dun, dun.**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Thanks so much for reading and reviewing! Sorry, I didn't get this out sooner. I was busying living it up in Chicago this week for an Ed Sheeran concert. If you haven't listened to him, go do it! Thanks to PTB for fixing my comma errors. I hate them!**

* * *

For hours, I sat on the couch and waited for an update. I constantly checked my phone to make sure that I hadn't somehow silenced or missed a call, but I hadn't. The waiting was slowly driving me mad and causing my imagination to go into overdrive. I imagined all kinds of horrible scenarios, all of them ending with Bella severely hurt or dead.

Finally, my phone rang, and in my haste to answer it, I dropped it on the floor. Scrambling around, I managed to grab it with sweaty hands..

"Hello?"

"It's Charlie. Bella's safe."

I let out a sigh and my body sagged into the couch.

"What happened?"

"She was mugged by a junkie. She managed to kick him in the balls, punch him, and get to a safe place, but he took her phone. She's got some bruises but otherwise, she's fine," he said quietly.

_Oh, thank God. _The crazy guy after me hadn't gotten to her.

"Where's she at?" I asked.

"She was leaving the station and heading home. She sounded good. Scared, but good."

I was so busy grabbing my wallet and keys, I almost didn't hear what Charlie said.

"You talked to her?" I asked, unable to keep the surprise out of my voice.

"Yeah. My buddy Dan gave her the phone, and we talked for a few minutes. We've made plans to talk tomorrow."

"That's great, Charlie."

"Yeah, it is," he said, sounding happier than he had for a while.

"Thanks for calling me back and letting me know what was going on."

We said our goodbyes, and I left the hotel, heading toward the airport. Book tour be damned; the woman that I was slightly crazy about had been attacked. Three and a half hours later, I was in a cab speeding toward her apartment.

I jumped out of the cab and ran up the front steps, pressing the buzzer to her apartment.

"Yes?"

"Bella, it's Edward."

The buzzer made a sound and the front door unlocked. I headed up the stairs and was greeted by her as she opened her door. She had a nasty bruise on her cheek and a swollen lip. Before I even realized what I was doing, I had wrapped my arms around her and was pressing a kiss to her head.

She hesitated for a second before wrapping her arms around my waist and resting her unscathed cheek against my chest. No words were spoken, but they weren't needed.

After a moment, she pulled away and wiped away a fallen tear.

"Edward, what are you doing here?"

"I had to see you to make sure you were okay," I explained.

"I'm fine."

"Are you sure?" I asked, my gaze landing on the bruise that marred her beautiful face.

She nodded firmly. "Yes. It was terrifying, but I'm okay. I kicked that asshole in the balls and punched him," she said, showing me her slightly bruised knuckles.

I couldn't help but grin at the fierce smile that graced her face as she spoke. "Way to go, champ."

"I took some self-defense classes when I first moved here. My mother was terrified for me; a young woman living alone in the big, bad city."

"Guess they paid off."

"Not quickly enough. I was terrified at first and froze. It wasn't until he grabbed my phone and smashed it when I realized just how vulnerable I was. At least with my phone, I could call for help."

I gently traced a finger down her unbruised cheek. "God, when I got that call from you and heard that guy, … I'm not gonna lie, it freaked me the fuck out. All I could think was that someone had you and was going to hurt you. I called Charlie right away in full-blown panic mode, and he called a police buddy of his up here."

She gave me a small smile. "I'm glad that you called him. He and I talked for a few minutes. We're going to talk more tomorrow."

"Good. I know that I've told you before, but I'm going to tell you again: Charlie is a great guy. Just give him a chance."

She looked me in the eye as if looking for something before she nodded and said, "I will. I promise."

We were both quiet for a few minutes before she spoke again. "Did you go to see your cousin today?"

_Oh, God._ I had totally forgotten about what had happened to Kathy in light of the panic that I'd gone through when I thought Bella had been taken.

"What happened?" she asked, taking my hand in hers, seeing the distress on my face.

I took a deep breath as the images from earlier flitted across my mind. "Kath—Kathy's dead."

Bella let out a gasp. "Oh, Edward. I'm so sorry. What happened?"

My hand trembled under hers as I recounted the events that had taken place. This time, Bella was the one who drew me in for a hug.

"I just don't get why this person would harm Kathy. She was harmless; annoying sometimes, but harmless," I mumbled into her hair.

"Edward?" Bella asked, pulling away a bit. "Was it routine for you to visit your cousin while in Chicago?"

"No. The only reason I went was because my mom called and asked me."

I paused for a moment and thought about what Bella was getting at.

"Don't you think it's a bit coincidental that you found your cousin dead not too long after your mother called you and asked you to go visit her?" she asked quietly.

"Motherfucker! The bastard's tapped my phone somehow! But wait—how could he? I just got this phone."

"Maybe your mother's phone is tapped?" Bella suggested.

My eyes narrowed, and I saw red. Nobody messed with my mother. Nobody!

Quickly, I pulled out my phone and called Charlie. I let him know Bella's theory, and he assured me that the police would sweep my parents' place.

"Edward? Where are you? A Detective Masen called me looking for you. Says that you aren't at your hotel."

"Oh, I'm … uh, back in New York."

I heard Charlie let out a sigh.

"What? They didn't tell me to stay put in Chicago. It's not like I'm a suspect or anything," I told him.

"Think about it, Edward. You find your cousin dead a few hours after she was killed and then you book it to New York later the same day. They'll think your a suspect now."

I hadn't thought about how leaving Chicago so quickly would look to the police.

Bella was sitting close enough to me to hear what Charlie said, and she surprised me when she grabbed my phone.

"I'll make sure Edward gets back on a plane to Chicago tomorrow morning. He has an obligation to two bookstores there."

I opened my mouth to protest but quickly shut it when Bella shot me a look, daring me to argue with her.

I heard Charlie thank her before she handed my phone back to me.

"I'll call Detective Masen and let him know that you'll be back tomorrow morning," Charlie told me.

"Fine," I replied.

We hung up, and I realized that it was close to nine o'clock. Standing up, I stretched and mentioned that I needed to find a room for the night.

"You can stay here," she offered, a light blush on her cheeks.

"I don't want to put you out."

She let out a sigh as she reached up and cupped my cheek. "You came all the way here to check on me. The least I can do is offer you a place to stay. You can take my bed, and I'll sleep on the couch."

I shook my head. There was no way I was letting her give up her bed. "I'll take the couch."

She fisted her hands on her hips and glared at me. "No, you won't. You've had a long, horrible day. You get the bed."

I crossed my arms over my chest and glared back. "You've had a long, horrible day as well. Plus, it's your place. Therefore, you should sleep in the bed."

"No."

"Yes!"

We stood there for a few moments arguing back and forth, before we looked at each other and started laughing.

"We sound like a bunch of kindergartners," Bella said.

"Yeah, we do."

"Really, Edward. Just take the bed," she begged.

"No, Bella. I'm not putting you out."

Clenching her jaw, she threw her hands up in the air. "Fine! You can sleep on the stupid couch!"

I smirked as she admitted defeat. I had been hoping that she'd offer to let me sleep in her bed with her but knew that even if she had, it would have been a bad idea.

By ten, I was mentally and physically exhausted. Bella grabbed a sheet, a blanket and a pillow before making the couch up for me. I thanked her before heading into the bathroom, where I found a packaged toothbrush laid out for me. I brushed my teeth before heading back out to the living room. I quickly stripped down to my boxers and lay down on the couch.

Thirty minutes later, I was on the floor cursing. Her couch was too small for my frame and at that moment, I was wishing I'd taken up her offer of sleeping in her bed.

"Edward?" Bella's sleepy voice called.

"Yeah?" I grunted.

"Get in here," she commanded.

I wasn't about to argue. Grabbing the pillow, I headed toward her room and peeked around the half-opened door. She was sitting up in her bed, looking rumpled and sexy in the glow of the streetlamp shining into her window.

Pointing to the other side of the bed, she told me to climb in, shut up and go to sleep. Grinning, I climbed into her bed and was immediately surrounded by her sweet smell. Freesia and strawberry. Rolling on to my side, I inhaled that wonderful scent and closed my eyes.

* * *

"Mmm … Edward. Don't stop," Bella's voice softly moaned.

My eyes flew open, unsure if I had somehow managed to molest her in my sleep. Turning over, I found her sprawled out on her back, hands running over her body.

"Sweet, Jesus," I mumbled quietly as I hardened at the sight before me. My hands curled into fists to keep from reaching out and touching her.

I knew that I should wake her up, or at least roll back over and try to sleep, but I couldn't tear my eyes away from the sight in front of me. Her hands ghosted over her breasts, before sliding down to the edge of her tiny tank top. I swallowed hard as her hands began to push her top up. I had to stop her before she could bare her chest to me. If she did that, I knew that whatever control I had would snap.

"Bella!" I hissed.

My voice only caused her to moan my name. _Jesus, I was fucked. _Reaching out, I gently pushed her shoulder, hoping to wake her. When that had no effect, I shook her shoulder until her eyes popped open.

"Ed—Edward?" she asked, her eyes blinking rapidly as she woke up.

"Yeah. Sorry to wake you, but uh … you were talking in your sleep," I said, trying not to let my gaze drift down her body and failing.

Her eyes followed mine, and she immediately shoved her top back down. Even in the dim light, I could see a blush grace her cheeks before she covered her face with her hands.

"Oh, God. What did I say?"

"Um …" I trailed off, not really wanting to embarrass her further.

"You must think I'm a slut," she said, her voice muffled by her hands.

"What?! No, of course not!"

She lowered her hands but wouldn't look at me as she spoke. "What must you think of me? I invite you to spend the night, invite you to my bed and then I molest you in my sleep."

"You molested me? Wish I'd been awake for that," I said with a grin.

Her hand came out and swatted me. "I verbally molested you."

I reached out and caught her hand before pressing a kiss to it. I couldn't help myself.

"You didn't molest me, verbally or otherwise. At least, I don't think you did. You might've moaned my name a few times, but that was it."

In the dim light, I saw her face flush and watched as the blush brightened. "Listen, Bella. You have nothing to be embarrassed of."

"You weren't the one moaning in your sleep."

"Yeah, well, I've moaned your name plenty of times in the shower," I told her.

"You—wait. What?" she asked, sounding confused.

"I said that—"

"You jerked off thinking about me?" she interrupted.

"Yes. Why wouldn't I? You're beautiful, smart, and sexy."

She rolled over so that we were lying face to face. "I'm smart, I'll give you that. But I'm not sexy or beautiful by any means."

Reaching out, I brushed a strand of hair off her face. "You don't see yourself clearly. Trust me, Bella. You're sexy. It's taking everything in me not to fuck you."

She just stared at me, and I wondered if I'd offended her with my bluntness.

"So, why aren't you?" she asked, shocking me.

"Because I don't want to fuck things up between us. Jesus, Bella. I—fuck! I'm no good with feelings and crap. I like you. Really like you, and now I sound like a fourth grader," I said with a groan, rolling onto my back.

"I really like you, too. But how would this work? I'm here, you're in Forks."

"I don't know. That was one of the reasons why I haven't tried to pursue things. Plus, there's the whole working together thing."

"I'm not concerned about our working together. I'm more worried about the long-distance relationship thing. I know people do it all the time, but I don't know if I'm strong enough to do it," she said softly.

"So, we'll just stay friends?" I asked.

There was silence from her and then I felt her move. She laid her head on my chest and wrapped an arm around my waist. I couldn't resist pulling her closer and trailing my fingers down her back.

"I feel things for you that I haven't felt before. I don't think we can just stay friends. Do you?"

"No. Leaving you was painful," I admitted.

"What do we do, Edward?"

"I don't have a clue. I've got a crazy person after me and a book tour to finish."

"Do you want to try?" she asked as her fingers drew patterns along my chest.

"More than anything," I said softly, rolling us over so that I was hovering over her, our lips almost touching.

"Thank, God," was all she said before her lips met mine.

I'd kissed plenty of women in my time, but never had a kiss ripped me apart the way that one did. Lips parted, tongues dueled, teeth nipped. Passion, lust, and fear were poured into that kiss. When we finally parted, we were both breathing hard and our lips were swollen.

God, if it felt that amazing just kissing her, I couldn't begin to imagine what it would be like when we finally fucked.

Unable to help myself, I leaned down for another kiss, hauling her closer to me. One of her legs wrapped around my waist, and we both let out moans as our hips met. I could feel her heat through my boxers, and I let out a low growl which caused her to thrust against me. I thrust back and soon we were dry-humping like a couple of teenagers, and it was fucking amazing. It didn't take long before I felt her nails sink into my shoulders, and I watched, fascinated, as she tossed her head back and called my name.

Hearing my name ripped from her lips set me off, and I came with a roar, trying not to collapse on her.

"Holy fuck!" I managed to get out as my heart raced in my chest.

"Hmm …" was her response, her eyes closed and a smile on her lips.

I excused myself and headed toward the bathroom. There was nothing worse than hanging out in a pair of jizz-covered boxers. I yanked my boxers off, cleaned myself up, and rinsed the boxers off before hanging them from her shower curtain rod.

Unashamed of my body, I walked back to her bedroom and found her watching me. She let out a little squeak when she realized that I was naked.

"Problem?" I asked, cocking an eyebrow at her.

She shook her head, her gaze never leaving my cock which was starting to come back to life.

I crawled back into bed and wrapped my arms around her.

"We'll find a way to make this work," I told her, knowing that there was no way I could live without her.

….

I stepped off the plane in Seattle and had never been so glad to be almost done with a book tour. It had been a rough few weeks. Bella and I talked, Skyped, texted, and emailed on a daily basis. We were determined to make things work. The morning that I'd left her had been filled with hot kisses, hard hugs, and a few tears. By her, not me. Although, I'd come close. It physically hurt being away from her.

Once I'd arrived back in Chicago, I'd been greeted by Detective Masen the second I'd stepped off the plane and had been subjected to hours upon hours of relentless questioning. It was no wonder people confessed to crimes they didn't commit. Hell, after four hours, I had been ready to confess just to get out of that tiny ass room.

Since I'd left Chicago, Charlie and Detective Masen had kept me up to date on their progress. The person hadn't left any fingerprints or DNA at the scene in Chicago, but the person had left a boot print in the kitchen. A female boot print belonging to a Prada boot.

The minute I'd heard that it was a women's boot, I'd urged Detective Masen to look at Tanya. Although, in all honesty, I couldn't see her setting foot in Kathy's place. Masen told me that they'd checked her out and that she hadn't left Washington.

Charlie had let me know that they'd found a bug, not only on Mom and Dad's house phone, but Alice's as well. Better yet, he'd been able to trace the bugs back to a spy store in Seattle and found that the bugs had been bought by a man named Alec Monroe. Granted, it was an alias, but it was a start.

I headed outside to catch a cab to the Barnes & Nobles when I saw two police officers heading my way. I didn't think anything of it, until they approached me.

"Edward Cullen?" one of them asked.

"Yeah."

"I need you to come with me please."

_Fuck! _ All I could think was that my family had been hurt somehow. I followed the officers to their car, where I was shoved into the back. Thirty minutes later, I was seated in an interrogation room.

"What's going on?" I asked, fear turning into anger.

One of the officers slapped down a picture on the table.

"Know her?"

I looked at the picture of the bruised and beaten woman. "Yeah, Victoria Hunter. Why?"

"She claims that you raped her and beat her up," the older cop said.

"Well, I didn't. I've met the woman two, maybe, three times and that was months ago."

"Where were you four days ago?" the same guy asked in a hostile manner.

"San Diego. Before that, L.A., Chicago, St. Louis, D.C., Boston, and New York. I haven't been in Washington in almost three weeks. If you don't believe me, you can look at my ticket stubs."

"How do you know Mrs. Hunter?" the younger cop asked me.

"I met her and her husband at a bar in Port Angeles. Later, I ran into her at an estate sale here in Seattle. Turns out her cousin is my ex-wife."

"Why would she claim you did this to her?" Uley asked.

"You'd have to ask her," I replied cooly. "Now, unless you're arresting me, I'm leaving."

"Don't go far," the older guy warned me.

"I'm in town until tomorrow, then I'm heading back to Forks," I said as I pulled Jenks' business card out of my pocket and tossed it on the table. "If you have further questions, you can contact my lawyer."

I was furious as I strolled out of the building. No, furious didn't even begin to cover it. I was fucking livid and would be suing Victoria Hunter for defamation.

* * *

"She did what?!" Bella shouted into the phone.

"She fucking claimed that I raped and beat her," I growled out.

"Why the hell would she say that?"

"I don't know, but I'm sure Tanya's behind it somehow," I seethed.

"Bitch better watch out because if I ever see her, I'll kick her fucking ass. No, screw that. I'll kick both of their asses!"

I couldn't help the small chuckle that escaped me. Bella was too cute, and I loved how protective she was of me.

"I talked to my lawyer about giving a DNA sample to rule me out, but he suggested I wait unless they request it."

"Not a bad idea. I mean, what if she managed to get your DNA somehow and stuck it under her nails or something?"

"I think you've watched too much CSI," I said with a grin.

"I don't think you watch it enough. If you did, you might have thought of that."

We talked for a while before I hung up. I was heading back to Forks in the morning and was more than ready to be back at home and to sleep in my own bed. Of course, that didn't happen. I was awaken by the Seattle P.D. a little after three and arrested—handcuffed and shoved into the back of a police cruiser.

"I want my lawyer," were the only words I spoke.

Five hours later, Jenks showed up and he was pissed.

"My client has a solid alibi. He was in San Diego and there are several hundred people who can put him there," Jenks stated to Detective Mooligan, the man in charge of the case.

"His DNA was found on her."

"Then she planted it," he argued.

Mooligan leaned back in his chair, arms crossed over his chest. "And why would she do that?"

"How about the fact that she's the cousin of my client's ex-wife? An ex-wife, who got nothing out of the divorce. Or maybe, it's because she came on to my client and he refuted her. Maybe she wants to ruin the life and career of a well-known author. Take your pick."

Mooligan didn't say anything, just stared at me. I stared back. I wasn't intimidated by the bastard.

"You have nothing to hold my client on," Jenks said as he gathered up his papers.

"Wrong. We've got his DNA on the victim."

"You've got a hair. One single hair. And he's got a solid alibi. There's no way he could've committed the crime given the time frame that Mrs. Hunter gave. You know this as well as I do. Why are you pursuing this so hard?" Jenks asked, as he stared at Mooligan.

"Could it be because she's the daughter of your former captain? Is that why?" Jenks demanded to know.

Mooligan's jaw tightened. "Get out of here—but know that I'll be watching you."

I rolled my eyes at his lame threat.

I headed home and felt a sense of relief when I drove past the Welcome to Forks sign. I headed to my parents' house, and I was swept up in hugs the minute I walked in the door.

"Where have you been? We were expecting you ages ago," Mom demanded to know.

"I was busy being arrested and interrogated."

"What?!"

I explained everything to my parents, and they were livid. Mom was threatening to sue everyone involved, while Dad placed a call to an old friend.

"Demitri said he'd dig around and see what else he can find out about Victoria and James," he informed me after ending his call.

Demitri was—well, a bounty hunter. He could hunt down anyone and find out almost anything about them. He'd worked for the government for years, doing God only knows what. After he'd almost been killed, he'd gone into bounty hunting. Still seemed like a dangerous job to me.

After spending some time with my folks, I headed home. I unlocked the door, entered the code, and stepped inside. It felt—empty. It hadn't felt that way when I'd left, but it did now. It was a missing a beautiful, sexy brunette. Rubbing a hand over my heart, I headed up to my room and dropped my bags on the floor. I'd unpack them later.

Stripping down, I climbed into bed and let out a sigh. There was nothing as comfortable as your own bed. Except maybe being in Bella's bed. I grabbed my phone off the nightstand and gave her a call.

"Hey, Edward," she answered.

"Hey, sweet girl. Did I wake you?"

"No. I was just about to head to bed. How was your day?"

I quickly filled her in on the events that had transpired.

"I'm so kicking that bitch's ass," she snarled.

"Can I watch?"

"You just want to see me rolling around on the floor with another girl, don't you?" she asked, suspiciously.

I barked out a laugh. "That thought never occurred to me, and if you do that, I'd prefer it not be with Victoria or Tanya."

We talked for about an hour before the yawns took hold of both of us. We said our goodbyes, and I hung up feeling better than I had. As I drifted off to sleep, I thought about moving to New York. It would make more sense for me to go to her, than for her to come to me. I could work from anywhere and as much as I loved Forks, I loved Bella more. Yes, I admitted it. I loved Bella.

* * *

**a/n: So, we're making some progress now. As always, let me know what you thought!**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: I apologize for the delay in getting this up. It's hard to type with one hand in a cast. *sigh* Anyway, thank you for sticking it out and for reading and reviewing. BTW, there's a lemon in this chapter so you've been warned. Big thanks to the peeps at PTB.**

* * *

It had been the week from hell, but it was finally over. Jenks had worked his magic and had gotten Victoria to drop the charges against me; not like they would've held up in court to begin with. Jenks wanted me to sue her for defamation, but I was on the fence about it. Don't get me wrong, I wanted her to pay for lying like she did, but I didn't want to have to deal with her anymore.

Dad's friend had been busy digging up dirt on the Hunters, but he hadn't gotten back to Dad yet. I knew, no matter what he found, that they were shady. There was something not quite right about them. It didn't help that Victoria was Tanya's cousin. That was one fucked-up family.

Mom had been a bit clingy ever since I'd gotten back. She'd found reasons to come over to my house or was always inviting me over to have dinner with her and Dad. Dad had told me that she was scared that something bad was going to happen to me. While I appreciated her concern, she was starting to smother me.

"Mom, I'm fine. I promise. I'll be at Jasper and Alice's on Saturday for our regular get together. I'll see you then," I told her, trying to push her out the door.

"Are you sure? I could stay and make you some dinner."

I put my hands on her shoulders. "Mom, I love you, but you're suffocating me. I need some time to myself. I'll see you in a couple of days."

Her hands came up to cup my face. "Are you sure, my boy?"

"Yes. Now go. I think Dad is feeling neglected."

I heaved a sigh of relief once she left. I flopped down on my couch and turned on my TV, catching up some shows on the DVR. I was halfway through an episode of _White Collar _when my phone alerted me to a text.

_Hey, baby. How are you?_

I smiled, seeing that it was Bella.

_Ok. Missing you._

We texted for a bit more before she excused herself to head to a meeting. I was missing her like crazy, and it was taking everything in me not to fly out to see her. I'd just begun to look up flights online when I heard a knock on the door.

"Charlie, how are you?" I asked when I saw him standing on my porch.

He ran a hand through his graying hair.

"I'm all right. I've got some news regarding Alec Monroe, as well as some information regarding your cousin."

I gestured him inside and followed him over to my couch. He sat down and opened up a small notebook that he'd pulled out of his pocket.

"Turns out, Alec Monroe is wanted in several states for various crimes: everything from burglary to attempted murder."

I let out a breath. "Jesus."

"Oh, it gets better. He's only been caught a handful of times and managed to escape police custody each time. I gave a description of James Hunter to the different police departments, and apparently he looks just like Alec Monroe."

_I knew it. I fucking knew it!_ That bastard was involved in all of this, and I would bet my life that Tanya was involved as well. She probably said something to Victoria, who said something to James, who decided to act out some sort of misplaced revenge on me.

"I don't know what you did to piss this guy off, Edward, but this guy is bad news."

"It's more like I pissed Tanya off when I divorced her, and she went and whined and bitched to her cousin, Victoria. The same Victoria that's married to James," I told him.

Charlie's eyes narrowed. "Looks like I'll be paying your ex-wife a visit. Do you know where she's living?"

"Port Angeles, maybe? I ran into her a while back, and she mentioned that she was getting married."

"I'll find her. So, I talked to Bella the other day," he said, changing the subject.

"Yeah? How'd that go?" I asked, curious as to how he thought it went. Bella had said that it had gone well. A bit awkward at first, but once they'd gotten over their initial nerves, it had been fine. She'd told me it was weird talking to Charlie after all those years.

"Good, good," he said, stroking his mustache. "Better than I could have hoped for, but I'm sure you know all this. After all, you and Bella have gotten close. Right?"

I nodded. I wasn't quite ready to tell Charlie that I was in love with his daughter. Hell, I'd barely admitted it to myself, plus I hadn't even told her yet.

* * *

The following Monday, I was awoken by a call from my mother.

"Edward, honey. You need to wake up and get to the hospital. Alice went into labor earlier this morning."

Immediately, my eyes flew open. Alice wasn't due for another month and a half.

"Is she okay? Is the baby okay?" I frantically asked, as I threw clothes on.

"Calm down, honey. Everything is fine. Well, Jasper looks like he might pass out, but other than that ,everything is fine. Alice is in very capable hands with the best obstetrician available. Now, don't rush and get in an accident on the way here. First babies tend to take their time, and they've got her monitored."

After hanging up, I headed downstairs, grabbed my keys, and left. I pulled into visitor parking at the hospital less than fifteen minutes later. So, okay, I'd sped a little. Or a lot.

I rushed into the hospital, got directions to the maternity ward, and headed toward Alice's room. I heard my family before I spotted them. Tiny Alice was bitching up a fit, and I could hear Jasper's worried voice trying to calm her down.

"Don't you tell me to calm down, Jasper Whitlock! I'm in labor! I'm about to push something the size of a watermelon out a hole the size of a pea! So, shut up!" she growled out.

I peeked my head around the door and saw Alice in a bed, hooked up to machines. She looked so small and fragile. Not wanting to incur her wrath, I quietly walked into the room and went to give Alice a hug.

"Hey," I said softly.

"Hey," she replied— the anger gone and replaced with worry.

"How you holding up?"

She shrugged before telling me that she was scared, yet excited. I wasn't about to tell her that I was scared as well. Dad was quick to assure us that Alice was in the best and most capable hands.

The next few hours passed by slowly with nurses and Alice's doctor coming in and checking on her progress. Alice and Jasper were talking softly, Dad was doing a crossword puzzle, and Mom was attempting to knit some baby socks. While everyone was occupied, I decided to call Bella to let her know that Alice had gone into labor.

"Hey, babe. How are you?" Bella asked once she answered.

"I'm…okay. I'm at the hospital. Alice is in labor," I told her.

"But she's not due for a while yet. Is she okay?"

I loved that she was so concerned about my family, despite that she'd never met them.

"I think so. They're monitoring her to make sure nothing goes wrong."

We talked for a few more minutes until she had to get back to work.

Five hours later, Alice brought Emma Whitlock into the world. She was tiny, weighing three pounds and eight ounces. I barely got a glimpse of Emma before the nurse put her into a small space capsule looking thing.

"They're not sending her to space are they?" I asked Dad jokingly.

He snorted and explained that it was an incubator, and that it would help Emma.

Eight days later, Emma was allowed to go home with her parents. Those eight days had been rough on both Jasper and Alice. They'd been worried and missing their baby girl and had only been too relieved to bring her home.

For the most part, things had been quiet on the whole Alec/James front. No more murders, no more break-ins, no threatening emails or phone calls. However, there had been several hang-ups on my parents' house phone, as well as voicemails where the caller just breathed into the phone for a few seconds. There was no way to prove that it was him, but I think we all knew it was.

Charlie had been busy for the past week and stopped by to let me know what he'd learned. He'd tracked Tanya down and found her living in an upscale condo in Port Angeles. Her condo had been paid for by her boyfriend; her older, married boyfriend. According to Charlie, her boyfriend's name was Eleazar Benito. He was fifty-six, owned several car chains, and had a clean record, except the whole cheating on his wife thing.

"She claims to know nothing about any of the threats against you. She says she's moved on, but I'm not sure I'm buying it. I saw several pictures of the two of you on her mantle, as well as pictures of just you," he told me.

I shook my head, disturbed that she still had pictures of me.

"Wonder what her boyfriend thinks about that?"

"From what I could tell, it looked like the pictures were removed and put back up. And Edward? Some of those pictures of you were taken while you were out doing everyday things, like pumping gas."

_Jesus! _"She's stalking me?! I think I would've noticed if she'd been following me around," I told him, sickened by the thought.

Charlie shook his head. "No, I don't think she is stalking you. But I do think that she either hired someone to follow you, or she's working with Alec."

That thought sickened me even more.

"Did you ask her about Alec, or James, or whatever his name is?"

He nodded. "I did. She says that she's only met James a handful of times. The first time being when James and Victoria got married two years ago. Tanya claims that she didn't see James again until the two of them came up here to visit her after you filed for divorce."

"Do you believe her?"

He stroked his mustache as he thought about his answer. "For the moment, but my gut is telling me that she knows more than she's saying. I'll be keeping an eye on her and Victoria."

"Jenks said that Victoria has gone MIA since dropping the charges against me."

Charlie gave me a smirk. "Tanya may have let it slip that Victoria is still around. When I questioned her, Tanya told me that Victoria stayed with her after James took off."

"So you talked to Victoria?"

"No, she wasn't around. Tanya claims that Victoria took off a few days ago. I told Tanya to call me the minute she sees or hears from Victoria. If not, I'd arrest her for obstruction of justice."

* * *

I was napping on my couch when the ringing of my doorbell woke me up. Grumbling, I got up and made my way to the door. I looked through the glass and got the surprise of my life. Bella was standing on my porch!

I threw the door open, hardly able to believe to my eyes.

"Bella!" I shouted as I wrapped her up in my arms.

She let out a delighted laugh as she pressed kisses all over my face, finally capturing my lips with hers.

"What are you doing here?" I asked as I lead her inside.

"I had some vacation time, and I was missing you horribly. It's been too long," she told me.

"I agree," I said, pressing another kiss to her lips. It had been almost two months since I'd seen her in New York, and I'd been entertaining the idea of visiting her.

"I hope you don't mind me showing up on your doorstep like this."

"Hardly. Let me show you around my house."

My house wasn't large by any means, but it took me thirty minutes to show her around. Mainly because we kept stopping to kiss, hug, and grope. The last room we came to was my bedroom.

"Wow, I'm impressed. I was expecting to see dirty laundry on the floor and a pile of porn mags," she teased.

"Ha ha," I replied sarcastically.

I watched as she sat down on the end of my bed, bouncing a little as if to test the mattress. I had to admit that she looked good on my bed, but I was willing to bet that she'd look better in it. Before I could comment on her trying out my bed, she got up and wandered around, looking at my stuff. I didn't mind.

Once she was done inspecting my room, she turned to me and threw herself in my arms.

"I'm so happy to see you!"

I hugged her tight and repeated her words back to her before pressing my lips to hers. Holding onto her tightly, I moved backward toward my bed, and had just sat down when the doorbell rang.

I hoped whoever it was would go away if I ignored the bell long enough, but whoever it was, wasn't to be deterred. Sighing, I reluctantly removed my lips from hers and grabbed her hand. We headed downstairs where I flung the door open, ready to give the person behind the door hell.

"What do you—" I trailed off when I saw my mom on the other side.

She raised an eyebrow at me and asked, "Aren't you going to invite me in?"

Knowing I had no choice, I held the door open wider, my hand gripping Bella's. Mom walked in and stopped the minute she noticed Bella.

"Hello, dear," she said before turning to me. "Aren't you going to introduce us?"

"Mom, this is Bella Swan. Bella, this is my mom, Esme."

"Oh, Bella! It's so wonderful to meet you. Look at you. You're beautiful."

A blush made its way up Bella's cheeks at Mom's words. My mom was right, though. Bella was stunning.

Mom pulled Bella into a hug, which Bella returned.

"What brings you to Forks, Bella?" Mom asked as we all sat down on the couch.

Bella gave Mom a shy smile before replying, "I was missing Edward, and I had some vacation time, so I thought I'd surprise him with a visit."

Mom was giving me a look that told me that I had a lot to explain, so I did so as quickly as possible.

"Bella and I are together," I told her, figuring that pretty much covered everything.

Oh, how wrong I was. The next few moments made me realize where Alice got her craziness from. Mom fired off question after question until my head felt like it would explode. I looked to Bella for help, but she just laughed at me.

"Mom! Slow down. I can only answer one thing at a time. Geez," I said, running my fingers through my hair. "As you know, Bella and I met in person for the first time in New York. After Kathy was killed, Bella was mugged by a junkie. She called me, scared and frantic, and I called Charlie. Anyway, that scare made me realize how much I cared about Bella."

"He flew back to New York to make sure I was okay," Bella said, picking up the story. "My heart just about leapt out of my chest when I saw him again. He's amazing."

Mom stayed and chatted for a bit before getting ready to leave. However, before she left, she said, "Oh, I totally forgot why I stopped by. I'm planning a surprise birthday party for your father on Sunday. I've invited some of his colleagues, as well as his step-sister, Carmen."

I raised my eyebrows in surprise. I didn't think that Dad was all that close to Carmen, and I said so.

"Well, you know they had a huge falling out after Carlisle's mother and Carmen's father died?"

I nodded.

"Carmen and Carlisle have managed to work things out since she moved to Port Angeles. I thought it would be nice to invite her," she said. "The party will be at two. I can assume that you and Bella will be there?"

"Of course," I replied, ready to push her out the door.

As soon as the door closed behind my mom, I turned to Bella. She was so fucking beautiful, and I couldn't resist placing kisses on her delicate throat. Her head tilted back as she let out a moan, and I lost my mind. I had to have her, and I hoped to God that she wouldn't have a problem with that.

"Would you object if we took this to my room?" I asked, my voice husky.

"Not at all," she said, leaning up on tip -toe to press a hard kiss to my lips. A kiss that seemed to go on forever without either of us taking a breath, and when we pulled apart we were both panting.

Eventually, we made our way to my room and picked up where we'd left off. Sitting on the edge of my bed, I pulled her between my legs and resumed my kisses. I pulled her long brown hair off her neck so that I could kiss and nibble across it. She tasted so good, and I had to remind myself not to rush things.

Bella had other ideas. She put her little hands on my chest and pushed me back, till I was lying prone on the bed. She kicked off her shoes, then climbed up to join me, straddling my hips. God, she was beautiful.

I watched in awe as she pulled her shirt over her head, leaving her clad in a skimpy, dark blue bra. I had no control over my hands as they reached up to cup her breasts. Perfection. Utter perfection. She fit perfectly in the palms of my hands.

Reaching behind her, I unhooked the bra, and did my best not to drool at the sight of her bare chest before me.

"Hey, no fair. I want to see your chest too," she said, tugging at the hem of my shirt.

I was only too happy to comply.

The second my shirt was off, her hands were all over me. She gently raked her nails across my chest, teasing my nipples and driving me crazy. Turnabout was fair play. I cupped her breasts, gently squeezing them, before rubbing them lightly. Immediately, her nipples hardened and she let out a gasp, grinding her hips against mine.

My eyes rolled back at the feel of her heat. I was hard as a fucking rock, and I took her by surprise when I rolled us over so I was on top. I leaned down and brushed my lips over one of her nipples before gently sucking it into my mouth. I continued my ministrations on her other nipple before she pulled my head away.

"I want you naked," she growled.

Well, hell. Who was I to argue? I quickly stripped off my pants and boxers and almost lost it when she grasped me in her hand. While I wasn't porn star huge, I was nicely endowed and quite proud of it.

Her warm hand began to jerk me off, her thumb occasionally rubbing the tip of my cock, and I let out a moan.

"Jesus, Bella! That feels so much better than when I do it myself."

She let out a little hum before her warm mouth engulfed me. I hadn't been expecting that, and I almost shot off the bed from the surprise. Lips, tongue, and teeth slowly drove me toward the brink, but I wasn't ready to lose it yet.

Reluctantly, I pulled her off of me and pressed a hard kiss to her mouth. I pushed her onto her back once again and gently tugged her jeans off. Underneath was some sexy little panties that barely covered her, and I couldn't wait to see what was hidden underneath.

I tugged her panties down, moaning at what I saw. She was gorgeous. All hot, wet, and bare. I slid a finger through her folds, eliciting a whimper from her before my finger found her clit.

"More, please!" she begged.

I eagerly complied. I slid a finger into her tight warmth, then another while my thumb worked her clit. Soon her hips were undulating, and she was moaning incoherently. She was almost there, so I gave her what she needed.

Leaning down, I licked her, sliding easily into her wet depths. I spread her legs a bit wider as I plunged my tongue in and out of her deliciousness. I groaned when I felt her hands grasp my hair, pulling me hard down on her mound. My tongue flicked her clit while my fingers continued thrusting, and soon she was screaming my name. My name had never sounded so good.

"Holy shit, Edward!"

I smirked, feeling extremely cocky in more ways than one.

"Feeling pretty pleased with yourself, aren't you?"

I shrugged as I took in the sight before me. Her hair was fanned about behind her, her chest flushed from her recent orgasm, and her pussy glistened with her juices. I'd never seen a more stunning sight.

"Do we need a condom?" I asked.

She shook her head, and I almost cheered. I slid between her open thighs and positioned myself at her entrance. We both groaned as I slid in and as cheesy as it sounds, it felt like I was coming home. Like I belonged there.

Our lovemaking, which I'd never thought I'd ever say I was doing, started off slow— both of us enjoying the feel of each other. She began to slowly increase the tempo as we matched thrust for thrust. We moved liked that for what seemed like ages, her hands digging into my shoulders, mine massaging those beautiful tits, pinching and squeezing her hard nipples.

Bella's breath began to speed up, and I could feel her body begin to clench down on me. Thrusting harder and faster, I kept it up until we both came, hollering out each other's names.

"That was fan-fucking-tastic," I managed to stammer out as I laid my head on her chest.

* * *

_The past few days have been some of the best days of my life_, I thought with a smile as I lay in bed with Bella curled up next to me. We'd pretty much spent the whole time in bed, but I wasn't complaining.

"What time is your dad's party again?" Bella asked, her voice thick with sleep.

"Two. We should probably get up and get ready."

After we shared a shower and got dressed, I grabbed my dad's present and we headed out to my car. As we drove to my parents, I noticed that Bella kept twisting her hands together.

"What's wrong, babe?"

"I'm nervous," she admitted softly. "What if your family doesn't like me?"

I pulled the car over and turned to face her. Cupping her cheek, I said, "Bella, my mom already loves you. I love you; why wouldn't the rest of my family?"

Bella let out a gasp and tears filled her eyes. For the life of me, I couldn't figure what I'd said that had upset her. I quickly ran over in my head what I'd said, but didn't understand what the tears were about.

"You l—love me?" she asked, her voice trembling.

No going back now. I nodded. "Very much so."

She threw herself across the seat and wrapped her arms around my neck and peppered my face with kisses.

"Oh, thank God! I love you, too. I told myself that it was too soon, but I can't help how I feel."

A few passionate kisses later, we got back on the road and arrived at my parents' house. Cars lined the driveway, and I pulled in behind Alice's SUV.

We climbed out, and she grasped my hand tightly as we walked in the door. The second the door was opened, we were assaulted with the smell of home-made pies, as well as laughter. Gently, I tugged Bella inside and closed the door behind us, then we made our way into the kitchen.

Mom was leaning against the counter, swaying gently with Emma in her arms. Alice was sitting at the table showing off some pictures she'd taken.

"Hey, Mom. Hey, Alice," I greeted.

Alice jumped up and gave me a hug, before giving me a long look as she noticed my hand clasped with Bella's.

"Hi, I'm Edward's sister, Alice."

"I'm Bella Swan," was all Bella got out before Alice wrapped her up in a hug.

"Oh, it's so wonderful to meet you! Edward's told me absolutely nothing about you!" she said, sticking her tongue out at me.

Bella let out a giggle. "Is that Emma?" she asked as spied the baby in my mom's arm.

And just like that, Bella and Alice became instant friends. Despite being bubbly, Alice tended to take a while to warm up to people. The fact that she took to Bella right away made me happy. I sat back in a chair and watched as Bella picked Emma up. It did funny things to my insides to see her cuddling the baby.

"Bella, honey? Charlie will be here shortly. I wasn't sure if you wanted to see him or not," Mom said, watching me watching Bella.

Bella looked up from Emma. "I'd like to. We've been talking once a week. Will Emmett be here?"

Just as she asked, a loud voice boomed from the living room causing little Emma to let out a squeak before bursting into tears. Alice let out a growl as she took Emma from Bella.

"He's already here," I said with a grin. "Want to go meet him?"

Standing up, she wiped her palms on the skirt of her dress before following me into the living room.

The minute we walked in, the room came to a stand-still. I could practically feel the blush coming off of Bella.

"Hey, guys. This is Bella Swan. My editor and…uh…girlfriend?" I asked more than said.

I actually wasn't sure what we were. We'd yet to put a label on our relationship, but seeing as she didn't refute me, I assumed she was okay with being my girlfriend.

Immediately, Emmett stepped forward with Rose at his side. There was a long pause before he swooped in and grabbed Bella in a bear hug. He swung her around in a circle until she was begging him to put her down. The second he did, I yanked her out of his grasp.

"Fucking hell, Emmett! Don't break her!" I scowled.

"Sorry, Bella! I'm just so excited to see you! If this guy doesn't treat you right, let me know. Got that, Eddie?"

"I won't hurt her," I vowed.

"Hi, I'm Rosalie. I'm married to the big buffoon," she said, stepping forward, holding out a hand to Bella.

Bella gave Rose a smile as she shook her hand. "It's wonderful to meet you. Emmett talks about you all the time."

"All good things, Rosie. I swear," Emmett said, making Rose roll her eyes at him.

We all spent the next hour talking until we heard a car pull up. Looking out the window, I saw Charlie's cruiser and watched as he and Dad got out of the car. I saw Charlie pull out his phone and motion for Dad to head inside. As soon as Dad entered, we all shouted happy birthday. Dad let out a surprised laugh, grinning when he saw me hand in hand with Bella.

"And who is this beautiful young woman?" he asked, picking her hand up and kissing the back of it.

I rolled my eyes at his attempt at being smooth.

"Dad, this is Bella Swan. Bella, this is my Dad, Carlisle."

After introducing them, I told Bella that Charlie was there. I led her toward the kitchen where I could hear Charlie talking and then the door bell rang.

Dad answered it, greeting Carmen and some guy named Eleazar. I frowned, remembering that name. That was the name of the guy who was sleeping with Tanya.

I didn't have long to ponder on this realization because we entered the kitchen and I knew the minute Charlie spotted Bella. He stopped and stared at her for a moment.

"Dad!" Emmett boomed from behind us. "Look who's here!"

Bella had been staring intently at the floor and froze for a moment upon seeing Charlie. Slowly, she took a tentative step toward Charlie as he did the same. They stood there just staring at one another, and then Bella threw herself at Charlie, and he wrapped his arms around her, burying his face in her hair.

Rose shooed everyone out of the room but us so Charlie and Bella could reunite without a ton of prying eyes. Tears, laughter, and voices talking over one another were the sounds that filled the room. My heart felt like it was swelling as I watched the two of them.

Eventually, Mom called everyone into the kitchen to eat. I grinned as I listened to Emmett and Bella ribbing each other, with Charlie telling them to behave.

"What is it you do, Eleazar?" Charlie asked halfway through the meal.

"Eleazar owns a few car dealerships," Carmen said as she stroked a hand over her husband's shoulder.

Charlie and I exchanged looks. There was no doubt that he was the same guy who was paying for Tanya's condo. _Jesus._ My ex-wife was fucking my step-aunt's husband.

After dinner, we all gathered in the living room to give Dad his gifts. Mom got him some fancy watch that he'd been lusting after, and Alice and Jasper got him a new medical bag. I'd been at a loss as to what to get him until I'd stumbled across a first edition of Bram Stoker's _Dracula_. Dad loved vampire books and movies, something that we all found amusing. The first edition had set me back quite a bit, but it was worth it to see the look on his face. For the first time since I could remember, he was lost for words. He stammered out a thank you before giving me a hug.

After gifts, we all grabbed some pie and ice cream. I'd just lifted my fork to take a bite, when a crack rang through the air. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion, and yet it all happened so fast. I remembered grabbing Bella and shoving her to the floor, while shouts and yells filled the air. Then there was pain.

Several people were calling my name, and I felt my shirt being ripped open. Strange hands were touching me, and the pain became unbearable. I felt myself being jostled around, and I heard Dad telling me to stay with them.

I tried to tell him I was fine, but I couldn't seem to open my mouth. Then darkness set in.

* * *

**a/n: Dun, dun, dun. I had fun with this chapter, minus the whole typing it one-handed. Let me know what you thought!**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Thank you for your patience while I was getting this chapter out and thank you for reading and reviewing. I won't bore you with a long A/N, so on you go.**

* * *

First, there was a horrible, anguishing pain in my chest, and then there was darkness. Complete and total darkness. But with the darkness came a calming peace, and I felt like I was floating until a jarring jolt brought the pain back.

"We've got a pulse! He's back. Let's move! Now!" an unfamiliar voice shouted.

I could feel my body being jostled around, and I wanted to tell them to be careful but no words would come. Eventually, the pain receded and that wonderful, peaceful darkness took over again.

As I floated in the darkness, I thought about my life, my family, my friends. I thought about the loud cracking noise and the horrible pain. But mostly, I thought about Bella. I thought about never seeing her again, and the pain that went through me was worse than any pain I'd ever felt before.

"Edward, baby, calm down. It's okay, sweetheart," I heard Bella say.

I needed to see her more than anything, and I struggled to open my eyes but they refused to open.

"Come back to us, baby," her sweet voice said.

I wanted to shout that I was trying, but no matter how hard I tried, my voice wouldn't respond. Eventually, her voice faded, and I was left with an infuriating beeping noise that was slowly driving me crazy.

At some point, the noise faded away, and I was left with nothing but an unbearable silence. During the silence, I began to think about where I was and what was wrong with me. I couldn't seem to move, and there was a horrible throbbing in my chest. At first, I'd thought I was dead, but the pain in my chest made me think otherwise. I wasn't dead, but I was obviously injured.

Darkness soon took over once again until a sweet voice began talking to me.

"C'mon, Edward. Open those beautiful green eyes for me," the voice said.

I was determined to see my Bella, so I tried again and again until finally, they cracked open and I was looking into the face of a beautiful, tired looking angel.

"Bella," I whispered.

"Hey, there," she said softly, brushing her fingers lightly over my cheek while tears pooled in her eyes.

I lifted my hand to capture hers and noticed the IV stuck in. Frowning, I looked around and noticed that I was in a hospital room with my family sitting wherever they could. Mom and Alice were sitting in chairs, looking tired with red-rimmed eyes. Jasper's normally neat hair was sticking up on all ends, and he looked like he hadn't slept in days. And Dad … Dad looked like he'd aged overnight.

"Why am I here?" I asked, trying to remember what happened.

Dad sat down on the edge of my bed before talking. "You were shot."

"I was what?!"

"Shot. The bullet entered through your back and exited out your chest, breaking a couple of your ribs and nicking your lung. You're extremely lucky that the bullet didn't hit your heart."

_Jesus!_ My mind was blown away by what I was hearing.

"How—how long have I been in here?"

"Eight days. They had to perform surgery to remove the bullet," Dad informed me.

"It's been a long eight days," Bella said, brushing my hair off my forehead.

I felt horrible that my family had suffered for those eight days. Then a thought crossed my mind. What if I wasn't the only one who'd gotten hurt? A quick glance at everyone showed that they looked fine, but that didn't mean that they hadn't gotten hurt.

"Are you all okay? What about Emma? Where's Emma? She wasn't hurt was she?" I asked, almost frantically when I realized that Emma wasn't with them.

"She's fine, Edward," Alice assured me. "She's with our neighbor, Mrs. Cope."

Relief swept through me. I would've never forgiven myself if something had happened to Emma.

"Do they know who shot me?"

Dad shook his head, but it was Bella who spoke.

"Not yet. Charlie's working on it. Did you know that Charlie is some kind of bullet expert?"

I shook my head no.

"Yeah, he did some kind of seminar with the Seattle FBI, and he's an honorary member of the member Pretty freaking cool, if you ask me. Anyway, Charlie got the bullet from the doctor and he's seeing if he can match it to a specific gun," she told me.

"So, he's a CSI now?" I asked, snickering at the thought then grimacing in pain.

"Let's hope so. I want to find out who did this," Bella said.

* * *

It had been a week since I'd come out of surgery, and I was going fucking insane stuck in that hospital bed. I had whined on more than one occasion that I was perfectly fine to go home. The doctors and nurses didn't seem to agree, nor did my own father.

"Son, I know you want to go home, but you can't. Not yet. You have a low grade infection."

"I'm fine," I growled at him.

He shook his head. "I don't think you understand, Edward. You got shot in the chest! You don't just get up and walk off after that kind of trauma. I've had gunshot victims that took up to three months to get well."

_Three months! Is__ he fucking kidding me? I'm __fucking sitting in this bed for three months!_

I opened my mouth to tell him that shit wasn't going to happen, but he held up a hand, silencing me.

"You'll be out by the end of next week if the infection is gone," he said before leaving my room to go finish his rounds.

Like that was any better. By the time I got out, Bella's vacation was going to be over, and I expressed that concern to her.

She'd been sitting quietly on the edge of my bed while Dad had been talking to me. Her small hand reached up and gently cupped my cheek.

"Babe, I've taken a leave of absence until you get better."

"What?! No, you can't do that. I don't want you to ruin your career because of me," I protested.

She pressed a finger to my lips, preventing anymore protest.

"You're my boyfriend. The man I'm in love with. I would do anything for you, Edward. Anything. Well … with the exception of a few things," she said with a grin.

I took my hand in hers and squeezed it tight before bringing it to my lips and pressing a kiss to the back of it.

"Thank you."

She shook her head. "You never have to thank me."

She leaned down and pressed her lips to mine, and I was lost in her kiss. The longer we kissed the harder I got but sadly knew that I couldn't do anything about it at the moment. Her hand began to glide up and down my thigh when a noise from the doorway broke us apart.

I looked over and saw Charlie propped up in the doorway, a scowl on his face. _Well, shit._ Busted by my girl's father; a father who carried a gun, no less.

"Sorry to interrupt, kids," he said sarcastically, "but I wanted to talk to you both."

I gestured for Charlie to pull up a chair and angled myself slightly so I could see him better.

"So, what have you got for me, CSI Swan?"

"That's Chief Swan to you, boy!" he said with a mock growl.

I held my hands up in surrender then winced at the pain it caused.

"The bullet that you were shot with came from a 9mm Beretta PX4 Storm Inox. I've got guys looking for registered owners in the area with that weapon. However, it seems that Alec or James, whatever you want to call him, has used Berettas in past crimes. I think there's a good chance that he's the one that did this."

"Did you get any DNA or anything from outside the house?" I asked him.

Charlie shook his head. "No DNA, but Emmett and I heard a car peel off after the shot was fired. Newton and Mark found tire treads on the street outside your parents' house. And before you ask, I've got an FBI friend of mine running the tire treads through their tire database to find out the make and model of the car. You have to understand, this isn't one of those crime shows you watch on TV. It's gonna take us more than forty-three minutes to solve the crime."

I let out a snort. "No shit. Has Detective Masen made any progress regarding Kathy's murder?"

"She was shot with a small caliber Smith & Wesson that was used in a previous drug-related crime. He's pretty much at a dead end at the moment, but I assure you, he's still working on the case."

I nodded. I wasn't surprised to hear that Detective Masen didn't have any leads. Whoever was behind Kathy's murder and my attempted murder was good, and that made me extremely nervous. I was pretty much convinced that it was James who was behind it, but without any evidence, Charlie couldn't arrest him, much less charge him with anything.

"So, when are you getting out of this joint?" he asked once we were done talking business.

"End of next week. Can't come soon enough. I'm sick to death of this place."

Charlie stayed and talked for a while more before reminding Bella that they were having dinner that night and he'd see me later.

A little before noon, Bella went out to get us some real food. I was sick to death of eating hospital food, especially that nasty ass green jello. I don't like my food to jiggle which, for some reason, Bella thought was hilarious. She'd spent the past week tormenting me with that nasty stuff.

I adjusted my bed into an upright position, grimacing when my ribs protested the move, and grabbed the remote from beside me. I flipped the TV on and channel surfed until I found what I was looking for: _General Hospital_. I was stupidly addicted to it and its cheesy, horrible plots. Not that I would ever admit that to anyone.

I only watched it when no one was around. I knew for a fact if my family or my friends found out, I'd never hear the end of it. If I couldn't watch it during the day, I'd hunt it down online after everyone had left. Although, it was hard to hide my addiction from Bella since she was with me most of the time.

I kept one eye out for Bella while trying to catch up on what was happening. I'd missed most of the episode, but I was still able to catch the end. Apparently, Bernie had been shot and killed on the pier and Jason had been wounded. _Damn it! _ I'd missed that part. I'd have to watch it on my laptop after Bella went to sleep.

Footsteps stopping in front of my door had me turning the TV off. I glanced at the clock on the wall, realizing that it couldn't be Bella. She'd gone to get burgers in Port Angeles from Red Mill, so she'd be gone for at least a forty minutes.

A sense of unease swept over me, and I gripped the remote tighter. I watched as the door opened and couldn't believe my eyes when I saw a head of blonde hair enter.

"Get out!" I roared, hitting the call button on the side of my bed. I didn't want that crazy bitch around me. She'd probably try and fuck with my IV or smother me with a pillow.

Instead of leaving, she closed the door and crossed the room toward me. Wearily, I watched her, ready to throw the remote at her head at a moment's notice.

"Did you not hear me, Tanya? I said to get out! You're not welcome here."

"I was so worried about you when I heard what had happened," she said, coming closer and closer.

_Where the fuck were the nurses?! _My finger was permanently glued to the call button, and I wasn't letting go until someone showed the fuck up.

"How did you hear what happened? I know that no one would've fucking told you," I snarled.

"My boyfriend mentioned it to me," she said.

"You mean my step-aunt's husband? Eleazar? Yeah, I know all about that," I said, taking in her shocked face. "What I don't understand is why you're here?"

"I told you. I was worried about you. I tried to see you earlier, but _she _was around. Who is she?" she spat out.

"She's none of your fucking business!" I yelled as the door opened and a nurse finally came in.

"What is going on in here?" she asked.

Pointing to Tanya, I said, "She's not welcome here. I don't want to see her in here ever again."

The nurse grabbed Tanya's arm and started to pull her toward the door.

"No! Don't send me away, Eddie! I just want to take care of you!" she cried out.

Bella chose that moment to come in, her hands full of take-out bags. The minute she spotted Tanya, she set the bags of food down and walked right up to her. Her hands were clenched in fists, and I thought she was about to start swinging.

"What are you doing here?" she growled at Tanya, and I found it extremely hot.

Tanya tossed back her hair and glared at Bella. "Visiting Edward. What? I'm not allowed to do that?"

"No, you're not. He divorced your skanky ass, remember?"

Tanya's eyes went feral when Bella called her skanky, and I expected the claws to come out, literally. The nurse, however, had apparently seen and heard enough because she practically dragged Tanya out of the room telling her that if she saw her anywhere near me, she'd call security and have them detain her while the police were called.

"Well, you had some excitement while I was gone, huh?" Bella said, picking up the bags of food and bringing them to me.

"Excitement? No, it was more like pure terror. I thought she might try and kill me."

Bella rolled her eyes and told me not to be so dramatic. I wasn't being dramatic at all. I was completely serious and told her so.

"I was ready to throw the remote at her if she came any closer."

Bella let out a snort. "I doubt it would have done any good. She looked like she was ready to throw herself at you and start humping away."

I shuddered at the horrible image that brought to mind. "Eww. Why did you have to go there?"

"You actually slept with her at one point in time, you know? Ugh! And now I've got that image in my brain. How could you sleep with her?"

"I was young and horny," I said in defense.

She nodded. "I guess I'll forgive you. Hungry?"

"Starving. What'd you get me?"

I let out a moan when she handed me a double bacon deluxe burger with cheese and a side of onion rings. Unwrapping my burger, I bit into like a crazed man who hadn't seen food in days.

"Slow down, babe. I don't need you choking to death on a burger."

"Bella, this isn't just a burger. It's a Red Mill burger!" I exclaimed. Then, I noticed that Bella had yet to take a bite of hers. When she'd told me earlier that she'd never had Red Mill burger, I'd about died. It was a must.

"Go on. Take a bite, and then tell me this isn't the most fuck-awesome burger you've ever eaten."

She unwrapped her cheeseburger and took a bite, letting out a moan worthy of a porn star.

"Jesus, Bella! You can't make food porn noises when I'm incapacitated. That's just cruel," I told her.

She gave me a grin and apologized before making loud, exaggerated moans. I rolled my eyes at her antics, loving how goofy she could be.

Once we were done eating, she crawled onto the bed and curled herself around me, mindful of my broken ribs. Reaching over me, she grabbed the remote and flipped it on.

"Really, Edward? Really? Daytime TV?"

I feigned innocence. "I don't watch that crap; I must have just stopped on that channel before I turned it off."

"Uh huh. Don't lie to me, mister! You've become addicted to soap operas!" she crowed.

I don't know how she knew, but she did. Hanging my head in shame, I finally came clean.

"I'm not addicted to soap operas. I just, sort of watch one. That's it, Bella. Just one."

She propped herself up on her elbow and looked at me in disbelief.

"Seriously? I was just joking around, but you seriously watch a soap opera?"

_Well, fuck. _ I'd outed myself.

"I watch _General Hospital, _but, it's not my fault! It's my nurse's fault. She had it on the other day, and before I knew it I was sucked in. It's like crack!"

Bella giggled, and I became distracted watching her chest bounce up and down. It seemed like it had been forever since I'd had my hands on those delightful mounds. I decided it was time to remedy that. I slipped my hand under her shirt and slowly moved up her torso, determined to reach my goal.

"Edward!" She giggled. "You have to stop. Your mom said she'd be stopping by later!"

"Yeah, well, she's not here now, is she," I said.

"Hey, kids!" Mom said as she came into the room without knocking.

Quickly, I removed my hand from Bella's shirt and tried to act like I hadn't just been about to grope my girlfriend.

Mom stayed for a while, knitting some weird outfit for Emma, and I told her all about Crazy Tanya's visit. Mom thought Tanya was off her rocker and needed mental help. I then let it slip that she was sleeping with Eleazar.

"She's what?! That little tramp! And Eleazar! What the hell is wrong with that man? Why in the world would he step out on his marriage? And with Tanya no less!"

I shrugged, not having an answer.

"Well, I'll be paying him a visit and setting him straight. I might not like Carmen all that much, but no one deserves to be cheated on!"

Around six, Bella left to meet Charlie for dinner and Mom headed to Alice and Jasper's. I was informed that Dad would be by to see me in a bit, but until then I was on my own. I picked my laptop up off the table and quickly got caught up on my show.

An hour later, Dad showed up while making his rounds.

"I hear you had an unwanted visitor today," he said as he came in and looked over my chart.

"Yeah. Not the highlight of my day."

"I wouldn't think so. Now, how are you feeling?"

"Okay, I guess. My chest hurts a little and my ribs are still sore, but nothing I can't handle."

He nodded. "Good. I'll recommend that you be sent home on Friday."

As good as that sounded, Friday was still four days away.

After Dad left, I was fed a horrible dinner consisting of rubbery chicken, limp green beans, and jello. Done with dinner, I popped the pill the nurse gave me and drifted off to dreamland.

Unpleasant dreams encompassed me and hard as I tried, I couldn't escape them. They were dark and twisted, filled with blood and fear. There were vampires, werewolves, and maniacal clowns running amok, destroying people.

Suddenly, I couldn't breathe. It felt like there was something covering my mouth and nose and my arms came up to rid the obstruction, but something blocked me.

"Let go. Be afraid. You all taste so much better when you're afraid," a voice said from beside me.

Thrashing, I woke up, my lungs working overtime to breathe in air. My chest and ribs felt like they were on fire and try as I might, I couldn't seem to catch my breath. I told myself it was just a dream until I spotted the red balloon tied to the end of my bed. _Holy fuck! _ Someone had been in my room. I hadn't imagined it.

I pressed the call button on my bed and within a few minutes a nurse opened my door.

"Is something wrong, Mr. Cullen?"

I pointed toward the balloon. "That's what's wrong. That wasn't there when I went to bed. Someone snuck into my room and put it there!" I roared, anger and fear unleashing inside me.

The nurse frowned and told me she'd be right back. I made her take the offensive balloon with her. She came back a few minutes later with a young nurse in tow.

"Tell him what you told me," she said in a harsh tone.

"Uh, this woman came by and said she wanted to leave you a balloon and a get well soon card. I didn't see the harm in it," the young woman mumbled.

"You didn't see the harm in it?! What? You just let strange people into patients' rooms in the middle of the night?" I shouted, furious with the girl.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

"Don't worry, Mr. Cullen. This will be taken care of, and I promise it won't happen again," the nurse told me as she began to drag the girl out of the room.

"Was the woman blonde?" I asked, thinking that maybe Tanya had gotten back in.

"No. She had curly red hair."

Victoria. That fucking bitch was going to get it. Who the fuck did she think she was, breaking into my room and trying to kill me? I had no doubt in my mind that she had tried to smother me with something.

Needless to say, I couldn't fall back to sleep, so I picked up my phone and gave Charlie a call.

" 'ello?" came Charlie's sleepy voice.

"Charlie, it's Edward. I'm sorry to wake you up, but Victoria was here."

"What?" he asked, his voice more alert. "What do you mean she was there?"

I quickly explained that some idiot had let her in and that she'd left me a red balloon. I explained that Pennywise the clown from _IT _had carried red balloons.

"Jesus Christ! This shit is fucked up, son. First, they were attempting to emulate your book, but when we caught on to that, they decided to use some clown from a Stephen King book! These people are fucked up!"

I barked out a harsh laugh. "No shit, Charlie. I should also let you know that Tanya showed up here earlier."

"Yeah, Bells told me about that. She also told me about your addiction to soap operas," he said, and I just knew he was grinning.

"Woman's got a big mouth," I muttered.

"Watch it, boy! That's my daughter you're talking about."

"Calm down, Charlie. I love her; she knows that."

There was silence on his end, and it took me a minute to realize that I'd told him that I loved his daughter.

"Huh. Well, she could do worse, I suppose."

"Gee, thanks."

"Anyway … uh, I'll head over to Tanya's and have a little talk with her. She was supposed to let me know when Victoria was back. Obviously, she didn't, and as such, I could arrest her for obstruction of justice."

After we were done talking, I settled back in the bed and flipped on the TV. Granted, it was three a.m. and there was nothing on. Sighing, I turned it off and grabbed my laptop.

I hadn't written anything in months but my creative juices weren't really flowing. I stared at the blank Word document for ages before I finally managed to put some words down. I really needed to get started on the next book in the series, but I had no direction on which to go. Although, I supposed I could use my current situation for a plot point.

Four hours later, I'd written sixty pages of garbage, but it was a start. I'd go back and tweak them later after I got Bella's opinion.

* * *

At eleven-oh-seven Friday morning, I was handed my walking papers. I hoped to God that I never had to spend another lengthy stay in a hospital. Hell, I hoped to never have to set foot in a hospital ever again, but I couldn't see Bella giving birth to our kids at home. _Jesus!_ I was thinking about having kids with Bella. I shook off that train of thought. We were nowhere near ready for that. Or, at least, I wasn't.

Yet, the whole way home, all I could picture was Bella holding our child, cuddling her the way she had with Emma.

"Edward? Are you okay?" Bella asked as we drove down the road toward my house.

"What? Yeah, sorry. Just had something on my mind," I told her.

"Care to share?"

I was sure I had that deer in the headlights look as I shook my head and mumbled that it wasn't important.

We pulled into the drive, and Bella helped me out of the car before grabbing my bags. I tried to argue that I could carry them, but she wouldn't hear of it. She unlocked the door, I followed her in, and the most delicious smell filled the air.

"What is that wonderful smell?" I asked her.

"Pot roast. It should be ready in a couple of hours."

"I think I love you."

She snickered. "If I had known that all it would take would be pot roast to make you fall in love with me, I'd have made it sooner."

Later that night, we crawled into my bed and she gently wrapped herself around me. I was horny as fuck and something needed to be done about it. I hadn't been able to jack off while I was in the hospital for fear that one of the nurses would barge in, and I was pretty sure my balls were blue. It was hard as fuck having Bella wrapped around me all night and not able to do anything about it.

I grabbed Bella's hand that was on my stomach and dragged it down toward my aching erection.

"I thought the doctor said to keep sexual activity to a minimum?"

"It has been at a minimum. One hand job won't kill me," I told her, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

Thankfully, she agreed with me. Her small, warm hand made its way into my boxers, and she stroked me lightly, before gripping me firmly.

"God, that feels good." I moaned, so relieved to have her hand on me.

With a steady grip she pumped my cock in her hand, up and down, hard then soft, fast then slow. She was driving me crazy, and I came almost embarrassingly fast.

"Shit. Sorry, Bella." I groaned.

She let out a husky laugh. "No need to apologize. I have a feeling round two will last much longer."

Round two? Fuck yes.

And round two had been fucking amazing. She'd stripped off her clothes, straddled me, and had driven me crazy with her tormenting. When she'd finally slipped me inside her, we'd both let out long moans. It had been far too long.

"Hmm … I love you, Edward," she'd whispered in my ear after she'd collapsed on top of me.

"I love you, too," I'd told her as we'd drifted off to sleep.

* * *

**a/n: I know that this was mainly a filler chapter, but it did have a bit of information. As always, leave me a review!**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Thank you all so much for the awesome reviews!**

* * *

It had been two weeks since I'd gotten out of the hospital, and those two weeks had been some of the best of my life. I loved how comfortable Bella was in my house, and the thought of her leaving terrified me. I knew, though, that she would eventually have to go back to New York. Her life, her job, and her friends were there. Just as my life and friends were here. However, after being shot and endangering my family, moving to New York didn't seem like such a bad idea.

"My flight leaves at noon on Sunday," Bella told me over breakfast in bed one morning.

I let out a sigh. I didn't want her to leave.

"I'll take you to the airport," I told her, while my mind was busy contemplating moving.

"I appreciate that. I don't want to leave, Edward, but I have to. If I want to keep my job, I have to go back," she said, sounding sad.

"I know, babe. Listen, I have an idea," I began. "I can write anywhere, and perhaps it would be a good idea for me to get out of town for a while. Why don't I come back to New York with you?"

She looked at me, curiosity in her beautiful brown eyes.

"What about your family?" she asked.

"They'll understand," I told her, hoping that they would. My folks knew how hard a long distance relationship could be. They'd done it while Dad was in med school.

That was how I found myself on a plane, sitting next to Bella on our way to New York. Mom and Dad had both agreed that maybe New York would be safer for me at the moment. Charlie, on the other hand, wasn't as pleased that I was leaving town, much less with his daughter, but he'd come to terms with it.

After our plane landed, we grabbed a cab to Bella's apartment and quickly got settled in.

"Man, I miss your house. I'd forgotten how small my apartment is," she told me as we put our clothes away.

"Yeah, I'll miss it too, but not as much as I would've missed you had I stayed behind."

She rolled her eyes, and mumbled that I was sweet but cheesy.

"Yet, you still love me."

She gave me a sweet smile followed by a sweet kiss. "That I do."

As I looked around her cramped apartment, I couldn't help but think that if I made the move to New York permanent, I would have to buy us a bigger place. Maybe a condo in SoHo or a penthouse. Or not. I could just see Bella reacting badly to that. I'd learned over the past two weeks that she didn't like it when I spent a lot of money on her.

We settled in on the couch, flipped on the TV, and stopped on an old detective movie that was playing. As she cuddled in my arms, my phone rang.

"Hey, Charlie."

"Edward. How was the flight?" he asked.

"Good."

"Good, good. I wanted to let you know that we brought Victoria in for questioning. Tanya finally came through and gave me an address of where Victoria had been staying."

I sat up, interested to know what he'd learned.

"What did you find out?" I asked, putting the phone on speaker so that Bella could hear as well.

"She is a nut job. I thought Tanya was crazy, but Victoria … well, she's something else."

"Of course she's a nut job. She's related to Tanya," I replied as Bella snickered.

"Yeah, but when I say nut job, I mean psychotic nut job," he said with a weary sigh.

Over the course of the next forty minutes, Charlie explained to us what he'd learned. Apparently, James and Victoria also went by Alec and Heidi Caius. They moved from town to town, state to state, conning people, robbing people, and leaving mayhem and destruction in their wake.

When Tanya had called Victoria, upset and in tears regarding the divorce, Victoria had taken it upon herself, with James' help, to make me pay for what I'd done. Victoria and Tanya had always been close, more like sisters rather than cousins, and Victoria had always looked out for Tanya.

At some point, after James and Victoria had moved to Port Angeles, Tanya, in a drunken rage, had wished me dead. James had taken her seriously and convinced Victoria to help him. Not that it had taken much convincing.

Victoria copped to the phone calls and emails and had told Charlie that she got the idea after reading that _IT_ was my favorite books. She and James had planned on using scenes from my own book, but when the police had caught on, they had switched tactics.

She did, however, claim that she had nothing to do with Kathy's death. She said that James had gone off the deep end, and she had no idea where he was. He'd turned off his cell phone and hadn't returned any of her calls.

"Victoria is being charged with attempted murder and conspiracy to commit murder. She's willing to give us all information that she has on James in exchange for a plea bargain."

"What about Tanya?" Bella asked. "She played a part in all of this as well."

"She's been arrested," he assured us." She admitted to breaking into your house and keying your car. The District Attorney wants to charge her with conspiracy to commit murder as well, but I'm not sure the charge will stick."

"Did she know that James and Victoria were planning on killing me?" I asked.

"She says no, and at the moment, we have no way of proving otherwise. We are currently gathering all the information we can about James Hunter. Victoria has given us a list of places that he frequents, but I want you two to be careful. We don't know where he is or how dangerous he is. I'm begging you both to be extra cautious."

We promised that we would watch our backs before saying goodbye to Charlie.

"I'm going to call my folks and let them know," I told Bella.

"I'll order dinner. What are you in the mood for?"

I shrugged, telling her to surprise me.

"Hi, Son. How was your flight?" Mom asked after greeting me.

I told her it was good, and then let her know what Charlie had told us.

"I always knew there was something wrong with that family. I just knew it! But you be careful. I don't want you or Bella getting hurt."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Oh, I didn't have time to tell you that I talked to Eleazar," she said.

"Oh, yeah? What did he have to say for himself?"

Mom let out a hmph. "Stupid man claims that he made a mistake. That it was a one-time thing and that he lost his mind for a moment. I told him he was stupid and that Tanya was your ex-wife and a crazy lady. I told him that if he didn't stop seeing her then I'd tell Carmen."

"Bet that went over well," I said with a grin.

"Well, seeing as how Carmen chose that moment to come home and overheard me—let's just say that she slapped him a few times and kicked him out."

"That's what he gets."

"Too right," Mom agreed.

We chatted for a bit more until she wanted to speak to Bella. I handed the phone over to Bella, glad that she and my mom got along so well.

The doorbell rang while they were still talking, so I went to answer, paid the delivery guy, and got our Thai food plated.

Bella smiled her thanks at me as I handed her a plate of food.

"I promise, Esme. We'll be safe. Uh huh. Did you want to talk to Edward again? Okay, well we'll talk to you later," Bella said, hanging up the phone.

"What did Mom want to talk to you about?" I asked as I took a bite of food.

"She just wanted to see how I was handling everything. I really like your mom, Edward. You're so lucky to have her."

Her eyes were a bit sad as I asked her if she'd heard back from her mom yet. She'd called and left messages for her mother before heading out to Forks.

"No," she said, shaking her head. "It's like she's avoiding me. I called again yesterday while you were in the shower and left a message telling her that I'd reconciled with Charlie."

I set down my food and wrapped my arm around her shoulder, pulling her close.

"I'm sorry, babe," I told her.

* * *

We'd been in New York for over a week, and there hadn't been any sightings of James that we knew of. Then again, New York was a huge city. He could be watching us and we'd never know it. Victoria had given up all she knew about him, and thanks to her, they'd located an old accomplice of his. The guy had told Charlie that James used to have a cabin in upstate New York. Charlie had contacted the New York State Police, and they'd sent out a team to locate the cabin.

I'd spent most of the past week cooped up in Bella's small apartment while she went to work. I'd written a bit, but I was suffering from writer's block and cabin fever.

"Can I come with you to work today?" I begged as I lay in bed, watching her get dressed.

"Is it bring your boyfriend to work day?" she asked, pulling her hair into a ponytail.

"I'm going crazy stuck in the apartment. I need to get out, interact with people," I whined.

Laughing, she agreed, and thirty minutes later we got off the subway and made our way to Volturi Publishing.

"Morning, Sam," Bella said to the security guard as we entered the building.

She scanned her ID then had me show him my license.

"This is Edward Cullen. He's visiting with us today," she told him.

I followed Bella over to a bank of elevators, and within a few minutes, we exited onto her floor.

Over the course of the first few hours, I was introduced to one person after another. I met so many people that I couldn't remember anyone's names.

A little after eleven, Bella had to go to a meeting, leaving me to fend for myself alone at her desk. I set aside my laptop and took a good look at her desk. Everything was neat and organized. All of her pens and pencils were in a pencil holder. All her Post-its were stacked neatly on top of one another, and her calendar was neatly penciled in. Her apartment wasn't nearly as neat as her desk.

Grinning, I picked up a cube picture frame that was sitting on the desk. It contained pictures of us as well as pictures of just me. I set it down, then stood up and stretched. My back cracked, and I figured I could use a bathroom break and some coffee while Bella was in her meeting.

I headed down the hall toward the bathrooms that Bella had pointed out to me earlier and made my way inside. I was surprised to see three guys hanging out, washing their hands. Apparently, the men's restroom was a popular place.

They all stopped talking when they saw me and kind of stared. Ignoring them, I headed into the stall. Thankfully, they were gone when I came out.

Leaving the bathroom, I tried to recall where the break room was. I didn't want to wander around aimlessly, so I stopped at the desk of a young woman.

"Excuse me? I'm sorry to bother you, but could you tell me where the break room is?"

The young woman barely even acknowledged my existence as she pointed down the hall I'd just come from. Thanking her, I headed back down the hall, past the bathrooms until I came to a small room that smelled like coffee.

I peeked my head around the open door and saw the room was empty.

I walked back to Bella's desk with my cup of coffee, stopping to take a look out the windows that lined the walls. Volturi Publishing had a fantastic view of the city. As I gazed out the window, someone came up behind me and cleared their throat. I turned around and found myself face to face with a scary looking woman.

"Mr. Cullen? I'm Bree Volturi, CEO of Volturi Publishing. Had we known that you were going to be stopping in, we would have made arrangements."

I shook her hand, instantly disliking her. "I'm not here on an official visit. I'm here visiting my girlfriend."

When Bella and I had officially become a couple, we had discussed whether or not to let the publishing world know. Some publishing companies had rules in place against editors fraternizing with the authors, but Volturi didn't. We'd scoured over her contract and spoken with Marcus about it. He'd been quick to assure us that it was fine for us to have a relationship and that he couldn't have been happier for the two of us.

However, Ms. Volturi's eyes widened and an eyebrow raised. "Your girlfriend works for us?"

I nodded, not liking the look in her eye.

"I see," she said in a cold voice. It looked like she wanted to say more, but she was interrupted by the ringing of her phone.

The minute she turned her back, I started walking back toward Bella's desk. Something about Bree Volturi set me on edge. Seeing as Bella wasn't back from her meeting, I pulled out my phone and gave Marcus a call.

"Edward, my boy. How are you?"

"Good. I'm over at Volturi waiting for Bella to get out of a meeting, and I just ran into Bree Volturi," I told him, keeping my voice down as I hunkered down at Bella's desk.

"Yeah, I'd heard that she'd been made CEO. She's a piece of work."

"So I've gathered. She wanted to know what I was doing here, and I said I was visiting my girlfriend. I didn't give her Bella's name, but she didn't look too happy when she realized that my girlfriend worked for Volturi."

Marcus let out a sigh. "From what I understand, Bree is making a lot of changes and pissing a lot of people off in the process. When you and Bella started dating there was nothing illegal about it, however, Bree may have changed the rules since then. Watch your back, and tell Bella to do the same."

I thanked him and hung up, waiting impatiently for Bella to get out of her meeting.

A few minutes after noon, Bella stomped over to her desk, and she looked furious.

"Let's go," she snarled, grabbed her coat off the back of her chair, and shoved her arms through the sleeves.

I followed her out to the elevator where we rode in silence to the lobby. I followed her as she stormed down the street before she stopped in front of an Italian deli. I barely missed getting hit by the door that she swung open with force, and I slowly walked in after her. Something in her meeting had obviously not gone well.

With our orders in hand, we sat down at a small booth in the back. I waited until she'd taken a few bites and calmed down before I asked what had happened.

"Bree Volturi is what happened. She's making all kinds of departmental changes as well as contractual changes. She's decided, even though she knows nothing about editing, that each of us editors will be taking on even more projects. Normally, we work with one or two authors at a time on their books. Now, Bree wants us working with up to five authors. It's just not feasible," she growled.

"Yeah, I ran into her while you were in your meeting," I told her. "She didn't seem too thrilled that I was there, much less to visit my girlfriend."

Bella looked sharply at me. "Does she know that we're dating?"

I shook my head. "I had a feeling she was going to ask me, but she got a phone call. Why?"

"I think she wants to implement a no-fraternizing rule. She looked less than pleased when she'd learned that Angela and Ben were engaged."

I knew a little about Angela and Ben. They were both friends of Bella's and worked at Volturi. Angela was an editor like Bella, while Ben worked in the sales department.

"I guess even if Bree does initiate a no-fraternizing policy, it wouldn't affect them, would it? I mean, they've been together since high school."

I shrugged, not really having a clue. "No idea, but the company could say that once Angela and Ben knew about the rule they would either have to stop dating or one of them would have to leave."

Bella frowned, not liking that idea.

"Hey," I said, reaching across the table to grasp her hand. "Try not to dwell on that at the moment. If that happens, we'll deal with it because it could affect us as well."

* * *

A month had passed since I'd moved to New York with Bella. The New York State Police had raided James' cabin and found cryptic notes and maps pinned to the walls, but they had no clue as to his whereabouts.

I had a feeling that he was in the city, biding his time, waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike. As such, I never let Bella go anywhere by herself, and my constant hovering was putting a strain on our relationship.

I took her to work every day, then I killed my time writing on my laptop at a local coffee shop or a bench in a nearby park. When lunch rolled around, I'd usually meet her outside her building or I'd bring food to her, but not today.

"Edward, I'm just going down the block to the deli with some co-workers. I'll be fine," she argued over the phone.

"But—"

"No, Edward! No! I love you, but you are smothering me! I'm not going to wander off by myself, but I'd like to have lunch with Angela and Ben. Alone!" she shouted before she hung up on me.

I sat on the bench and stared at my phone in disbelief. _She'd hung up on me!_ I knew that I had probably taken things a bit overboard, but I hadn't realized that it was upsetting her so much.

Deciding to give her time to calm down, I didn't call or text her until a little after two. I wasn't all that concerned when I didn't hear back right away. I knew that she had some conference calls to make. However, when I hadn't heard from her by three-thirty, I started to get a bit worried.

I packed my laptop away and headed toward her building, greeting Sam as I walked in. I waited impatiently for the elevator to arrive and, once inside, wished it would go faster. Finally, it stopped on her floor and I got out.

"Angela?" I asked the young brunette with glasses.

She nodded. "Hello, Edward."

"Is Bella around?" I asked.

"She should be. We all came back from lunch at one and then she had some conference calls. After that, she had a meeting with our boss, Sallie. She should be back any minute if you want to wait at her desk."

I thanked Angela and weaved my way through the desks before stopping at Bella's. I sat down in her chair and began waiting. I hadn't been there more than ten minutes when a woman in her fifties approached Bella's desk.

"Excuse me?" she asked.

I looked up at her. "Yes?"

"Who are you?" she asked.

I quickly explained who I was and that I was waiting for Bella to come back from a meeting.

The woman frowned as she looked at me. "She never showed for our meeting. I was hoping you knew where she was."

I shook my head trying to quell my panic. Bella wouldn't not show up to a meeting with her boss.

Pulling out my phone, I tried her again, only this time it went straight to voicemail.

I took a deep breath in an attempt to calm myself. It wouldn't do anyone any good if I panicked.

"What's going on?" the woman, who I assumed was Sallie, asked.

I shook my head as I dialed Charlie's number and walked a ways down the hall until I found some privacy.

"Hey, Edward."

"Charlie, I can't find Bella!"

There was a pause. "What do you mean you can't find Bella?"

"I mean I can't find her. I'm at her office, and she was supposed to have a meeting with her boss, but she never showed. Bella wouldn't just blow off something like that. No has seen her since lunch," I said a bit hysterically.

"Edward, calm down. I'm going to call the police and send them over, but I need you to stay calm. While you're waiting for the police, see if you can't talk to her co-workers and find out when exactly they saw her last."

I agreed, and as soon as I hung up the phone, I went back to Angela's desk. She told me that they'd all walked back from lunch together, and that she'd passed Bella at her desk a little after two, where she'd been on a conference call.

Angela was extremely worried and demanded to know what was going on. I knew that Bella trusted her, so I quickly filled her in. Needless to say, Angela was now as scared as I was.

Thirty minutes went by before a detective by the name of David Beckett showed up. He introduced himself and informed me that he was an old friend of Charlie's. He explained to me that Charlie had told him all about James and how dangerous he was.

"When was the last time you spoke to Bella?" he asked me.

"A little before noon. We had a tiff. She felt I was smothering her. I didn't call her again until around two, but I didn't get an answer," I told him.

We spoke a few minutes more before he left to talk to Bella's colleagues. While he was doing that, I paced around the sitting area and watched as another cop came off the elevator. He had something in his hand, and upon a closer look, I saw it was Bella's phone.

I made my way over to him, demanding to know what was going on.

"Sir, you need to calm down and take a step back," he warned.

Reluctantly, I did as he asked. I watched as he spoke to Detective Beckett and then they motioned me to follow them.

When we were inside a conference room, the other detective slid Bella's phone across the table.

"Is this Bella's phone?"

I nodded as I looked at the phone with the purple design on its cover.

"It was found in the stairwell," he informed me. "We believe that she may have been taken."

I was not going to cry. Last time Bella had gone missing, it was because some guy had tried to mug her. Maybe this was the same thing, but in my heart I knew that James had gotten her.

"We found blood in the stairwell as well," Detective Beckett said, causing my heart to lurch.

"Oh, God! You don't think she's dead, do you?"

They both shook their heads as they explained that it was a minimal amount of blood. Not enough for them to think that she had been severely harmed.

"Hunter has taken her because he knows how important she is to you. We've dealt with criminals like him before. There's a good chance that he's going to call you and offer an exchange. You for her. Or he'll ask for a ransom. Hunter will do whatever it takes to get to you."

I nodded, already knowing that.

"Here's what we're going to do. We'll put a trace on your cell, so when he calls, we can try and pinpoint his location. Keep him talking as long as possible."

It has been sixteen hours since Bella had been taken. Sixteen excruciating hours, and not one fucking phone call. There was nothing I could do except wait and that was the hardest thing to do.

I'd gone back to Bella's apartment just in case she managed to escape and show up there. I was sitting in the dark, miserable and terrified, when the buzzer to her apartment went off, scaring the fuck out of me.

"Who is it?" I barked into the intercom.

"World Delivery. I have a package for Edward Cullen."

I hit the button to let him in then grabbed a knife from the kitchen. I didn't know what was going on, but something didn't feel right. He knocked on the door, and I cracked it open, the knife hidden behind my back. I took the package that he offered me and closed the door.

I set the small box down on the coffee table and called Detective Beckett.

Within minutes, he showed up and carefully opened the package. Nestled inside the tissue paper was a human ear. A small ear with an emerald stud in it. The same kind of earring that I'd given Bella just days ago.

Bile welled up in my throat, and I barely made it to the bathroom before losing everything in my stomach. My beautiful Bella. He'd harmed my Bella, and I was going to make sure the fucker paid.

"Edward? I need to take this to the lab to have it tested. We don't know for sure that this ear belongs to Bella," he said once I came out of the bathroom.

"I bought her those earrings," I choked out.

"I know that I've told you this before, but I need you to remain calm. Is there someone who can stay with you?"

I nodded. My family would be landing at JFK within the hour.

"Good. What you need right now is a strong support system. You will get through this. So will Bella. Let me get this analyzed, and we'll have a better idea of what's going on," he told me, giving my shoulder a squeeze.

An hour and a half later, I was sitting on the couch with my Mom's arm around me. My entire family had shown up, baby Emma included, as well as Charlie, Emmett, and Rose.

Charlie had headed straight to Detective Beckett's precinct the minute they'd gotten in, and we'd yet to hear from him. I knew that it would take the lab time to gather information, but I was dying for any little bit of information.

Finally, my cell phone rang, startling all of us.

"Hello?"

* * *

**A/N: Yes, yes. An evil cliffie. The next chapter is going to be from BPOV. I think it's time to hear what she has to say.**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: This chapter isn't necessarily an outtake, but it is from Bella's POV. I thought now would be a good time to hear from her. A big thanks to PTB for all the help. And for those of you who celebrate Thanksgiving, Happy Turkey Day! Thanks so much for all the awesome reviews! I've been a total fail at responding to them, but know that they are read and appreciated.**

* * *

I couldn't believe how stupid I'd been. I'd come back from lunch with Angela and some of the other people in the office and decided to hit up the bathroom before returning to my desk. I didn't think to ask anyone to go with me. _Why would I? _ I was in the building, surrounded by co-workers.

I'd walked down the hall to the bathroom when the door to the stairwell opened and a man had walked out. I hadn't thought much of it since people had to be cleared by security to get into the building, but I should have been more vigilant.

Before I'd even had time to blink, let alone call for help, a hand with a cloth in it pressed itself over my mouth and everything had gone black.

I came to with a massive headache and panic soon set in when I tried to move my hands to rub at my temple and found that I couldn't. My hands were bound behind my back so tightly that it felt like my circulation was being cut off, and I discovered that my legs were bound as well.

James. He must have taken me, and all I could think about was how worried and scared Edward must be. That thought was all it took for me to make a decision then and there to somehow find a way back to Edward.

My wiggling around must have alerted James that I was awake because he hollered at me to stop moving. Not wanting to anger him and have him cause me serious harm, I obeyed, but I didn't stop trying to get my wrists free; I was just quieter about it.

As I lay there, I took a look at my surroundings and tried to memorize every little detail. I was on an ugly, carpeted floor in what looked to be a sleazy motel room. There were orange drapes and hideous, green wallpaper. There was a bed near a window and a man perched on the side of it, his back to me.

I guess he figured that I wasn't much of a threat and that was why his back was turned to me. I hoped that I could prove him wrong.

Freeing my hands was much harder than I'd thought it would be. They make it look so easy in the movies. The rope that was tied around my wrists had cut into my skin with every move I made, causing the skin to break open and bleed. My fingers were slippery with my own blood, something I tried not to think about as I continued to tug and pull at the rope.

I kept my eye on James the whole time, stopping anytime he turned toward me.

He was talking in hushed tones into his phone, finally telling the person on the other line to hurry up and get over there.

Tossing his phone onto the bed behind him, he stood up and headed toward me. Crouching down next to me, he reached out and traced a finger down my cheek, and I jerked away in disgust.

"Hold still!" he growled, slapping me across the face before pulling a knife out of a sheath on his belt.

Immediately, I stopped moving and held my breath, my lower lip throbbing from being split open by his slap. I prayed to every God out there he wouldn't use that knife on me. I'd rather he hit me than slice me up into tiny pieces.

"Good girl," he said after I stilled.

I watched, warily as he moved closer to me. He laid the knife down on the ground next to him, before taking my head in his hands and turning it. I closed my eyes and prayed that it would be quick. I didn't want to suffer.

I braced myself and my eyes flew open as he unclasped my earring before standing up. To say I was confused would be an understatement.

A knocking on the door had James picking up the knife and grasping it tightly in his hand. He looked through the peephole then opened the door a fraction. Moments later, the door shut and James sat back down on the bed with a small box in his hands.

I couldn't see what was in the box from my spot on the floor, but I saw him fiddling with my earring before putting the object back in the box.

Standing up, he walked past me and headed into the bathroom before coming out with a familiar looking cloth. He was going to drug me again, and I couldn't let that happen.

He reached down, grasped my arm, and yanked me to my feet. I began to struggle earnestly, lashing out any way I could. A blow to the side of my head had me seeing stars, and I watched in horror as he covered my mouth with the cloth.

The world started to blur, and I felt him hoist me over his shoulder. Then my world slid into darkness.

* * *

"Wake up, you stupid bitch!" a voice hollered at me, and then I felt a stinging pain grace my cheek.

I jerked away from the pain, only to feel it again.

I opened my eyes and found myself staring at James, and he looked furious. Scary and furious. His eyes had a wild, manic look to them, and his face looked haggard and stressed.

"How did you do it?" he demanded to know, hauling me up to my feet, which were now unbound.

I had no idea what he was talking about, and I said as much.

"Don't fucking lie to me!" he screamed before hitting me in the face again, and I felt my lip split reopen, tasting the copper of blood in my mouth. I swallowed back the bile that wanted to come up.

"I don't know what you're talking about!" I shouted back. "If I did, I'd fucking tell you!"

He shoved me away from him, causing me to lose my balance and slam my hip into the side of a wooden table. I gasped as the sharp edge dug into my side, then quickly shut my mouth. No need to piss the crazy bastard off even more than he was.

"How the fuck did this happen?" he roared into his phone.

There was silence from him for a minute before he started hollering again. "She would never turn on me! Never. That stupid bitch worships the ground I walk on. If she did give me up, it's because she was forced into it!"

I assumed he was talking about Victoria throwing him under the bus.

"I bet anything that Tanya is behind it. Find her and take her out! I want her gone! Is that understood?"

James paused as he listened, and then he said, "Good. Now, I've got my own problem to take care of."

Hanging up his phone, he turned to me with a menacing smile. He grasped my arm and shoved me down onto a chair before pulling up another chair and facing me.

"Your little boyfriend should have received my gift by now. I wonder how he's taking it?"

I knew that he wanted me to ask what he was talking about, but I refused to play into his sick and twisted game.

"Shall I gave him a call and see how he's holding up?"

Again, I stared at him, hoping like hell that he'd get what was coming to him.

James seemed unfazed by my lack of response and picked up his phone, twirling it in his hands.

He sat back down in the chair across from me and pulled out his knife, warning me not to do anything stupid. He told me he'd hate to have to kill his cash cow before he got his cash.

I sat there and watched in silence as he pushed a button on his phone, crossing one leg over the other and playing with the knife.

"Where is she?" I heard Edward shout through the phone.

I opened my mouth to respond but shut it when James pointed the knife at me.

"Now, now, Cullen. There's no need to get testy. Did you get my present?"

I didn't hear what Edward said but whatever it was, it made James laugh.

"Here's what you're going to do, Cullen. If you want to see your precious Bella alive, you will follow my orders. Understood?"

Edward must have responded because James smiled and replied, "Excellent. See how much easier this is when you cooperate with me?"

The next fifteen minutes were spent with James giving Edward directions on what to do and where to go. Edward was supposed to meet James at a cabin deep in the woods near Albany. Once there, James would supposedly let me go in exchange for money . I hoped like hell that Edward wouldn't fall for it. It was obvious that James would kill both of us.

"… and come alone. If I see anyone else there, I won't hesitate to kill her."

After James hung up the phone, he got up and began to shove things into a black duffle bag. I saw several large knives and a gun as well.

"Why are you doing this?" I asked him.

"Why not?" was his reply.

"I want to know. Why do you want to kill Edward so badly? He never did anything to you."

He zipped up the bag and turned to face me. "I have a job to do, and I always complete my jobs."

"What?" I asked, confused.

"It's not like I'm doing this for free."

My mind whirled, trying to comprehend what I'd just heard. _What did he mean by he wasn't doing it for free? Did that mean someone had paid him to kill Edward?_

"You're telling me that someone hired you to kill Edward?" I asked, disbelief in my voice.

"See? I knew you weren't just a pretty face."

I reeled with the news. Someone seriously wanted Edward dead. The only person I could think of was Tanya, but she didn't have much money, and I had a feeling James wouldn't be killing someone for cheap.

"So, why not just shoot him on the street or something? Why take me?"

"You ask a lot of questions. Then again, it doesn't really matter since you won't live to tell anyone the answers," he told me, delight in his voice.

Subconsciously, I had known that he was going to kill me, but hearing him say it was more than unsettling.

"Then tell me!" I demanded.

"My instructions were to make his death as painful as possible; to make him suffer. Who am I to argue with my client? What my client wants, my client gets. As for you—what better way to make Cullen suffer than for him to watch you die a slow, painful death."

He truly was a sick fuck. There'd never been any doubt really, but now I knew it to be true.

"Enough talking. We've got to get on the road," he said, coming over with some rope in his hands.

The second he was in front of me, I lashed out, kicking him as hard as could near his groin. I must have made contact because he dropped to his knees, pain on his face. I ran for the door, trying to unlock and open it with my hands still tied behind my back. It was extremely difficult and it took far longer than I wanted, but I managed to get it open.

I ran down the hall, screaming for help, but not one person came to my aid. I kept running until I came to the front desk, which looked abandoned. I didn't stop to hang around, and headed out the door only to get hit with the realization that there was no one around to help.

From the look of the outside of the motel, the sign, and the parking lot, the place hadn't been used for a very long time.

My only real chance was to make a run for it, but I had no idea where to run. I had no way of knowing if there was a town or houses nearby. I couldn't hear any traffic, and the road in front of the motel looked desolate.

The slamming of a door had me turning around, and I saw James limping toward me. There was no time, I had to run.

I'd never been athletic and as I ran toward the road, I prayed that I'd have the strength to get somewhere safe.

I could hear James running after me, cursing and hollering.

I pushed myself to run faster, knowing that my chances of outrunning James were slim.

The sides of the road were covered in dense woods, and I decided that I'd have a better chance in there then on the open road.

I ran around a bend before going off the road and into the woods. I went a ways into the woods, yet close enough to still see the road. I ducked behind a tree, bending over and trying to catch my breath. I swore then and there that if I got out alive, I'd start exercising.

I heard James calling my name, and I held my breath, not wanting to give away my spot. I knew that I couldn't just stay in one place, so as quietly as possible, I began to move.

The woods began to get thicker the further in I went. While I'd wanted to stay near the road, I knew James would be able to find me easier.

I kept moving, hoping that I was heading in the direction that the road had been going. I heard the snapping of a twig behind me and immediately ducked behind a large pine tree.

I heard more twigs snapping and then I heard James.

"Come out, come out, wherever you are! I know you're out here, Isabella!" he called.

_Shit, shit, shit! _He was closer than I'd thought. I hunkered down and stayed where I was until I heard his footsteps moving on. Not willing to risk it, I waited for another ten minutes before I began moving again.

Nightfall was beginning to cross the sky, and I feared being stuck in the woods in the darkness. All kinds of creepy animals came out then, and I had no idea what lurked in these woods.

Quietly, I began moving, much slower than normal, since my vision had become limited. I paused when I heard the sound of water nearby. I figured if I could find the water, I could follow it to civilization.

Minutes passed before I found what seemed to be a river. I let out a sigh as I walked down to its bank.

The bank was dry, and I figured I could camp there for the night; not that I wanted to. However, I figured that would be safer than wandering the woods in the dark with James lurking about.

The moon was quite bright, something I was grateful for, and I scouted around for a sharp rock to use to get the rope off my hands. It didn't take too long to find one, but it did take forever to get the rope off. I scraped the hell out of my wrists and winced at the pain, but it was better than being tied up.

* * *

It had been the longest night of my life, and I hadn't slept a wink. I'd been too scared. Scared of wild animals, of James, and scared for Edward. I had no idea how far away from Albany I was, but if James was to meet Edward there today, then I figured James wouldn't be hanging about in the woods. At least I hoped he wasn't.

As soon as there was enough light, I began trekking down the river bank. My body hurt, I was dirty, and I was frightened. I jumped at every little movement, thinking it was James.

I had no idea how long I'd been walking but eventually, I saw a dock along the river. _If there was a dock, __it would make sense that there was a house or a road nearby, right? _ I headed toward the dock and saw a small dirt path heading up a hill.

I started running up the hill until a cabin came into view, and I heard voices: one female and one male. My body sagged with relief when I spotted the elderly couple sitting in a couple of chairs on the deck of the cabin.

"Good morning, dear!" the woman called out as she spotted me.

That was all it took for the tears to start. I stumbled toward them and collapsed upon reaching the deck stairs.

Almost immediately, warm arms wrapped themselves around my shoulders, and she helped me up the stairs and settled me into a rocking chair.

"Walter! Get the first aid kit!"

The elderly man scrambled out of his chair and hurried inside, coming back a minute later. He handed her the kit which she took and opened, pulling out supplies.

She cleaned the scrapes and cuts before applying some ointment to them.

"What in the world happened to you, dear?" she asked.

With tears streaming down my face and a quiver in my voice, I explained everything that had happened. I told them about James taking me and holding me hostage. I told them about Edward and my fear for his safety, and how he was probably going out of his mind with worry about me. Before long, I couldn't speak because I was a blubbering mess.

The woman, who introduced herself as Dottie, dried my tears as she told her husband to get the phone. Walter complied immediately and handed me the phone.

With trembling fingers, I dialed Edward's number. It rang and rang before going to voicemail. I tried it three more times, before deciding to call Charlie.

"Hello?" his gruff voice answered.

"Ch—Charlie?"

"Bella! Oh, God! Where are you? Are you okay? Talk to me!"

"I'm—" I paused and took a deep breath. "I'm okay. I've got some scrapes and bruises and a nasty headache. But I got away from James."

The tears began again and, at some point, Dottie took the phone from me and told Charlie where I was. Once she handed the phone back to me, I was told to stay put and that he'd be out to get me.

"What about Edward?" I asked. "I can't get a hold of him. I'm afraid he's gone off to meet James!"

Charlie mumbled out a curse.

"I'll find him, and then I'm going to beat Edward's ass. The boy knew he was supposed to stay put."

After talking to Charlie, I'd learned that I'd been missing for two days. It had felt like I'd been gone longer than that.

Dottie insisted that I take a shower and get warm while she made me something to eat. I had a feeling that she always got her way, and who was I to argue when I wanted both.

My emotions were all over the place, and I spent my time in the shower crying before becoming quite angry. Angry at James for being the vile human being that he was; angry at the person who had hired him, and angry at Edward for going off to meet him. I didn't have any proof that he had, but I knew Edward.

Dottie had laid out some clothes for me that she told me belonged to her granddaughter, and once I was changed, I found her in the kitchen. She placed a bowl of soup in front of me and I quickly devoured it.

A few hours later, there was a knock on the door, and Walter let Charlie in. I ran to him, throwing my arms around him and holding on tight. Charlie grasped me to him, burying his face in my hair.

Eventually, he pulled away, and I saw tears in his eyes. He quickly looked me over as if to reassure himself that I was okay. I assured him that I was.

Charlie wasn't alone though. He'd brought with him a detective that was working the case, David Beckett.

Charlie sat with me as I told Detective Beckett everything that I knew. Including the fact that James had been hired by someone to kill Edward.

"Did he say who?" Detective Beckett asked me.

I shook my head no.

"Could it be his ex-wife?"

"I don't think so," I told him. "She doesn't have the money, I don't think. Also, James ordered a hit on her. He thinks she's behind Victoria turning on him."

Charlie spoke up then. "We've got Tanya in custody, so she'll be safe. I don't believe that she would have hired James, but I'll have my deputy question her, and James' wife as well."

While Detective Beckett asked me question after question, Charlie was on the phone with his deputies. Once the detective had asked all his questions, he excused himself to make some phone calls and send out some men to the cabin where James wanted to meet Edward.

We sat in silence while Detective Beckett was on the phone.

"… okay. I'll let them know," he said before hanging up his phone.

He turned to face Charlie and I before saying, "We located the cabin where Hunter arranged to meet Edward."

"And?" I asked, not liking the look on his face.

He ran a hand through his hair before answering. "Edward's rental car is there, but he's not. We think that James has him."

_No, no, no! _ "James will kill him! He'll torture him to death! You have to find him!" I shouted.

"Bella—"

"No, Charlie! You don't understand! James is a sick fuck! God, only knows what he's doing to my Edward!" I hollered before turning my gaze to Detective Beckett. "Why didn't you have men watching Edward? You had to have known that he was going to meet with James."

Detective Beckett squatted in front of me. "Bella, please listen to me. We did have men watching Edward, but he gave them the slip. James had told him that if he brought anyone with him, he'd kill you. Chances are good that Edward believed him."

I buried my face in Charlie's shoulder, sobbing quietly. All I wanted was my Edward. I wanted him safe and sound and in my arms.

"We will find him," Detective Beckett promised.

I was afraid, however, that they wouldn't find Edward in time, and I knew that I couldn't live without him. He was my everything.

* * *

**a/n: We'll be back to EPOV next chapter. As always, let me know what you thought!**


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: The previous version of this chapter was the un-beta'd version. I've updated it.

* * *

I was going insane sitting around waiting for fucking Hunter to call. I didn't understand why nothing was being done. My woman was out there being tortured by the bastard!

I was pacing up and down the room like a caged tiger when the phone finally rang. I grabbed it and listened as Hunter told me to meet him at a cabin in the woods near Albany. I was to stop at a post office in Burtley where I would pick up a letter containing directions to the cabin. He hung up before the police could complete the trace on the call.

Immediately, I was told that I would not be going. I didn't know what fucking game Detective Beckett was playing, but I wasn't going along with it. There was no way in hell I was going to sit there and do nothing when Bella's life rested in the hands of a deranged fuck-up.

I waited until Detective Beckett left, then studied the habits of the two men babysitting me. The fat cop took smoke breaks every twenty minutes, it was the skinny guy that I was concerned about. He never seemed to move, except to get coffee.

Twenty minutes later, the fat guy went out for his smoke, but the other one hadn't moved as of yet. In a moment of pure genius, I accidentally knocked over his cup of coffee. He gave me a scowl before heading into the kitchen to get some more. Seizing the moment, I slipped out the door and down the stairs. I ducked around the back of Bella's apartment building and caught a cab on the other side of the street.

Forty minutes later, I was cruising down the interstate in a rental car, headed toward Burtley. It killed me to have to drive the speed limit, but I couldn't afford to get stopped for speeding. If that happened, I'd be back in the city before I could blink.

An hour and a half later, I pulled up in front of the Burtley Post Office and headed inside. There was a woman with a mustache behind the counter who handed me an envelope that some "very nice man" had left for me. _Very nice man, my ass. _That woman had no idea what the fuck she was talking about.

I ripped open the envelope and scanned the letter. I was to take a back road down to Highway 12 and from there I'd turn off onto an old logging road and drive about five miles north. I was to park in front of the cabin, and he warned me that I'd better be alone.

I knew that I wouldn't be alone for long. I was positive that the police were hot on my trail and would be arriving in Burtley shortly.

Clutching the letter, I got back in the car and started driving toward Highway 12. Thirty minutes later, I swung the car into a rough right turn, almost missing the logging road. It was pretty well hidden and there wasn't a sign, but something told me it was the right road.

Driving down the road, I clutched the steering wheel tightly as an old hunting cabin came into view. I stopped the car in front of the cabin and climbed out. I stood and listened for a moment. It was unnaturally silent and a chill swept over me.

Looking around, I didn't see another vehicle anywhere, but that didn't mean Hunter wasn't there. However, I wasn't about to enter that cabin without some kind of weapon. I picked up a rather hefty rock that was on the ground and slowly made my way up the stairs to the cabin. They creaked and bent under my weight, alerting Hunter that I had arrived—if the noise of the car hadn't. Taking a deep breath and praying that my Bella was in there and unharmed, I reached out and turned the doorknob.

It turned easily, and the door swung open revealing a dark room. I gave my eyes a moment to adjust before entering. I hadn't gone far when I heard a noise to the right of me.

Just as I turned, a blow landed on the side of my head. I dropped to my knees as a horrible pain raced throughout my skull. Despite the fact that I was on the ground, I didn't let go of the rock in my hand.

I couldn't see where Hunter was but I swung out anyway, gritting my teeth at the pain.

"Tsk, tsk, Cullen. I would have thought you'd be better behaved. After all, I have what you want, don't I?" his voice said behind me.

I slowly stood up and turned toward him. He was holding a knife in his hand, rubbing his thumb over the blade.

"Where is she?" I growled.

He let out a laugh. "All in good time, Cullen. All in good time. Now tell me. Did you come up here alone?"

"Yes," I spat.

"Good, good," he said absently.

I kept an eye on him, my hand clutching the rock. I wasn't sure if he'd seen it or not, but I wasn't about to let go of it.

"You know Cullen, you have been far more trouble than you're worth, and believe me, I asked for a lot to complete this job. From the get-go, you've been a fucking thorn in my side, and I must say, it's going to be a pleasure killing you."

My mind was reeling, stuck on the fact that someone was paying him to kill me. My mind flittered through who would do such a thing, and I honestly didn't have an answer.

"You don't have a clue, do you?" Hunter asked.

I didn't bother to answer him. He stood there, roaring with laughter. Rage flowed through me, and I made my attack.

I bull-rushed him, smashing the rock as hard as I could against his head. He howled in pain but not before jamming the knife he had into my ribs and twisting. The rock fell out of my hand as I gasped and clutched my stomach.

Hunter wasn't done. He was leaned over me and laughed, before plunging the knife back into me. I struggled against him, screaming Bella's name.

"You're a fucking dead man, Cullen. Fucking dead. And when I'm through with you, I'm going to kill that fucking bitch of yours."

She was still alive, and that was all my mind would focus on.

"Bitch fucking got away, but not for long. I'll hunt her down, and then I'll kill the fucking whore slowly. I can promise you this. I'll enjoy every second of it," he spat.

Despite the pain that had taken over my body, I knew that I had to stop Hunter. I had to stop him from killing Bella. She meant more to me than my own life. She was my everything, and I couldn't let him kill her.

Roaring, almost deranged with anger and fear, I struck out. My fist connected with his jaw, making his head jerk back, but he didn't let go of the knife. I hit him again and again until he finally dropped the it.

It took all my strength to roll us over until I was on top. I reached out and grabbed the first thing my hand touched and smashed Hunter in the face with it. I hit him until he stopped moving and, at that moment, I didn't care if I'd killed him.

Taking a moment to gather my breath, I stumbled to my feet, swaying a bit.

I leaned against the wall until the world stopped spinning. Then, pressing a hand to the wounds on my stomach, I began to slowly walk toward the door. I had to get back in the car so I could find Bella.

I barely made it down the steps before the pain in my torso brought me to my knees and the world began to fade. Darkness threatened to take over, but I fought it. I couldn't afford to pass out before I found Bella.

Managing to open the car door, I collapsed on the front seat. It took me several tries before I was able to focus enough to turn the engine on and put the car in drive. I was so disoriented that I could hardly remember how to get back to the main road.

Highway 12 come into view, and I let out a sigh. I pulled onto the road and headed back toward Burtley, or at least I hoped I was. My vision was blurring, and I was having a problem putting pressure on the gas pedal. Leaning forward, hissing at the pain, I noticed that I was only going thirty miles an hour. It sure as hell felt like I was going a lot fucking faster than that.

I wasn't sure how long I'd been driving, but I knew the town had to be coming up soon. I was so focused on the road ahead that I failed to pay attention to the road behind me until something slammed into the rental car, and my whole body jerked forward, causing me to scream in the process.

I glanced in the rear view mirror and saw a car with an extremely battered and pissed off guy behind the wheel. Guess I hadn't killed Hunter after all.

Gritting my teeth, I floored the fucking car, praying like hell that I would make it to the town safely.

My hands were wrapped so tightly around the steering wheel that my knuckles were white, and I was afraid my teeth were going to crack with as hard as I was clenching down on them.

I drove past the _Welcome to Burtley_ sign, but I couldn't find it in myself to be relieved. Hunter was still riding my ass, and my only hope was to find the police station. The town wasn't all that big, and when I saw a little sign indicating the Burtley Police Department, I swung onto the curb and slammed the brakes.

As quickly as I could, I got out of the car and tried to run up the steps. However, I wasn't fast enough in my injured state. Before I could blink, Hunter had a knife at my throat and dared me to make a sound.

I figured I was a dead man whether I kept quiet or not, so I made the decision to get into that police station no matter what.

I jabbed my elbow into his gut and stomped on his foot, which caused him to jerk and the tip of the knife broke the skin on my throat. Not a lot, but enough to draw blood. I wasn't deterred. I kept jabbing and fighting him until I managed to get him to slam me into the door.

Within seconds, there were two police officers with guns drawn, aiming at Hunter.

"Put the knife down!" one of them shouted.

Hunter let out a maniacal laugh and wrapped an arm around my throat, effectively cutting off my air supply. I clawed at his hands with my nails, but it didn't have any effect.

"Put the knife down sir, or we will shoot!"

Hunter didn't seem to have heard them or if he did, he didn't care. Instead, he started walking back down the steps, dragging me along with him. The wounds in my stomach were bleeding profusely, and my body was going into shock.

As Hunter dragged me down the steps, a shot rang out and I flinched. I hoped to hell they hadn't actually shot me.

"Fuckers!" Hunter yelled in my ear.

Another shot rang out, and I felt his grip loosen. I fell onto the ground, and I heard Hunter scream.

The next few minutes were a flurry of activity. I was still laying face down on the concrete steps, watching as several pairs of feet rushed by me. One pair stopped next to me and a voice asked if I was okay.

"Not really," I got out. "He stabbed me a couple of times."

A call for a paramedic was sent out, and I was carefully turned over. Black spots were dancing in front of my eyes, and I blinked to try and clear my vision.

"What's your name?" I was asked.

"Edward Cullen."

"Cullen," the guy muttered. "Oh, shit! This is the guy that the New York detective was calling about!"

I winced as he shouted; my head was throbbing.

His yelling was all it took. Suddenly, I was surrounded by what sounded like hundreds of people. My shirt was yanked up with no thought of modesty and something was pressed against the wounds. I could hear a man talking on the phone, assuring whoever was on the other end that I was alive. I faded in and out of consciousness until someone mentioned Bella's name.

"Bella!" I hollered, struggling to get to her even though I had no idea where she was.

"Calm down, son. She's fine. Your girl is with her father."

Upon hearing Bella was safe, my body sagged and gave up the fight it had been having to stay conscious.

* * *

"I'm going to kill him!" hollered a screeching female voice.

I winced as I heard it, but refused to open my eyes. I didn't want to face the wrath of my little sister. She could be a real pain in the ass.

"Alice, please," I heard the voice of my angel say. "The last thing he needs is you yelling at him. He's been through hell and back. Please cut him some slack."

"Fine," she huffed. "But once he's out of the hospital, I'm going to kick his ass. He's giving me gray hair!"

I mentally rolled my eyes. I wasn't giving her gray hair. _Did she think I enjoyed getting hurt? _ Because I didn't.

Slowly, I opened one eye and peeked around the room. Bella was sitting beside me on the bed, her hand placed on my leg. Alice was sitting in one of the chairs with Jasper behind her. Mom, Dad, and Charlie were all standing around.

Bella must have sensed that I was awake because she turned to me.

"Hey," she said softly.

"Hi," I managed to get out, my throat sore and dry.

I took a moment to look at her. She was so beautiful. There was a bruise fading on her cheek, and her lower lip had a couple of stitches in it. My hands clenched at my sides when I thought about the fact that Hunter had laid his hands on her.

Bella held out a cup with a straw, and I sighed as the cool water soothed my throat.

As soon as Bella set the cup down on the side table, she wrapped her arms around me and started to cry. Once again, I'd caused her to cry, and I hated myself for it. _What kind of selfish bastard was I?_ Apparently, I was the kind that made his girlfriend cry, and it made me realize that there was no way I was good enough for her.

Eventually, Bella pulled away and wiped the tears from her cheeks.

"Don't you ever fucking do that again! When the police tell you to stay put, you fucking stay put!" she shouted at me, despite having just told Alice not to yell at me.

All I could do was nod as she continued to yell at me. Finally, she ran out of steam and told me she was going for a walk.

I turned to look at my family and found myself faced with several looks of anger, worry, and disappointment.

"How could you have been so stupid, Edward?" Alice asked, arms crossed her tiny chest.

"Are you going to tell me that if Jasper or Emma had been taken by some fucking lunatic, you'd just sit back and do nothing?"

"I'd do what the police told me," she said.

"Liar," I sneered. It was easy for her to sit there and say that she'd do what she was told, but I would bet my life that she'd have done the same thing I had.

The next twenty minutes were spent being lectured by my parents and Charlie. All I heard was how stupid I'd been, blah, blah, blah. It pissed me off because I knew damn well that they would have done the same fucking thing I had. _How dare they go and act all high and mighty?!_

"I get it!" I roared, tired of listening to them. "I'm a fucking idiot! Well, excuse me for going after the love of my life. Excuse me for not sitting there and waiting for the police to tell me that they found her fucking body!"

I was fucking furious. Self-righteous bastards, all of them, and I'd had enough. I told them all to get the hell out.

"Edward—" Mom began.

"Just leave. All of you. Just go. I'm tired of listening to this shit."

My stomach hurt, I had a massive headache, and Bella hadn't come back yet.

After they left, I lay there staring at the ceiling, thinking things over. My mind kept replaying everything my family had said. Maybe they were right. Maybe I was fucking idiot—a fucking idiot that didn't deserve Bella.

The more I thought about it, the more I realized it was true. I didn't deserve her. She was too good for me, and all I'd done since I'd met her was put her in danger. It was my fault that she'd gotten hurt. If I'd just kept things professional between us, none of this would have ever happened.

That's when I made up my mind. In order to keep Bella safe from the Hunters of the world, I was going to have to break up with her. It pained me to think of doing so. It literally felt like my heart was shredding, but I knew it was what I had to do.

I knew that Hunter was in a cell, but that didn't mean that Bella was safe from him. God only knew what kind of friends he had out there. Not to mention they hadn't been able to find out who had hired Hunter, and rom what Charlie had said, he was keeping his mouth shut.

That meant that as long as I was still alive and the person who wanted me dead was still out there, then Bella wouldn't be safe around me.

Taking a deep breath, I told myself that I was doing the right thing.

I woke up from a nap a while later and found Bella sitting in a chair near the window. It hurt to look at her, especially knowing what I was about to do.

"Hey. You're awake," she said, crossing the room and sitting on the edge of my bed.

"Yeah," I croaked out, sighing in relief as she handed me the cup of water.

I took a few sips and steadied myself for what I was about to do.

"I'm sorry I yelled at you," she said, brushing a lock of hair off my forehead.

"It's fine. You were right. I was stupid. I should never have gone after Hunter," I told her before taking a breath. "Here's the thing, Bella. I think—I _know _that you'll be safer without me around."

"What?" she asked, confusion on her pretty face.

"All I've done is bring danger into your life. If we'd never gotten together then Hunter would never have gone after you. You'd have never gotten hurt. And since we don't know who wants me dead, I've decided that you'll be safer without me around. I'm going back to Forks after they release me."

"I see," she said, her voice and eyes going cold. "You've decided that I'll be safer without you. Do I get any say in this?"

I shook my head. "No. I'm sorry, Bella. I really am. I love you so fucking much, but I can't be in your life. I have to keep you safe, and the best way to do that is to break up with you."

I was struggling not to cry as my heart broke in two.

She stood up, her hands and voice shaking as she said, "So, that's it then? You've made up your mind? You're breaking up with me to keep me safe?"

I nodded.

She took a deep breath and stood up taller. "Fine. It was nice knowing you, Edward. I hope you realize that you've just made the biggest mistake of your life."

And then she walked out the door.

The door slammed shut with such finality that I knew she was gone for good. I'd never hold her again, I'd never make love to her again; I'd never hear her tell me she loved me.

I didn't even try to stop the tears as they fell. Bella Swan had been the best thing that had ever happened to me, and I knew that I would never love again.

* * *

I'd been back in Forks for two weeks, and I was a miserable fucker. I snapped at any and everyone that got in my way. I holed up in my house, rarely leaving unless I had to. I refused visitors; I didn't answer my phone or emails. Essentially, I was living—but just barely.

I couldn't remember the last time that I'd actually gotten a decent night's sleep. I hardly remembered to eat, and I was smoking like a fiend. And I drank. A lot. Whiskey helped me forget about Bella for a while.

The only phone call I'd taken in the past week had been from Detective Beckett. He'd called to let me know that they'd officially charged Hunter with kidnapping, attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon, and some other stuff. I'd pretty much stopped listening halfway through. He'd also mentioned that they still didn't have a clue who had hired Hunter, and Hunter refused to rat the person out.

I was almost beyond caring anymore. Hell, at the rate I was going, I'd end up drinking myself to death before someone else got around to killing me.

I was sprawled out on my couch with a bottle of Jack, not really watching the TV when there was a knock on the door. I didn't bother to get up and answer it. I wasn't in the mood to deal with anyone.

"Edward! Open the fucking door!" Jasper hollered from the other side.

I chose to stay where I was. Besides, I was so fucking drunk, I doubted I could actually get up to get the door.

I heard a noise from outside, then the door swung open and in walked my very pissed off brother-in-law.

"Jesus, Edward! It smells like a fucking bar in here!"

"Whatever," I mumbled as ash from cigarette fell on the floor. I couldn't remember where I'd put the ashtray, but it's not like it really mattered anyway.

"Come on, let's get you sobered up."

"No," was my response, but Jasper didn't listen.

He hauled me up the stairs and tossed me in the shower, turning the water to cold.

"Jasper! You Goddamn fucking asshole bastard!" I screamed as freezing water soaked me.

Five minutes later, I was dragged out the shower, madder than a wet cat. Jasper tossed me a towel and told me to get changed.

"We're going out, fucker," he told me.

_Like hell we were! I wasn't fucking going anywhere!_

Ten minutes and a punch to the face later, I was sitting in the passenger side of Jasper's car as he drove us to my parents' house. I'd been informed that it was Sunday, and that we were having brunch with the whole family.

Jasper stopped the car, and my mom yanked my door open.

"Edward! Oh, my poor baby!" she cried as she smothered me in a hug.

I hugged her back but didn't say anything. _What was there to say?_

Brunch was an awkward affair. Everyone was trying to act like nothing had happened, and it was obvious.

Finally, I couldn't take it anymore. I shoved my chair away from the table and headed outside to grab a smoke and wish for a drink.

"How are you holding up, son?" Dad asked, following me outside.

"Just fucking peachy," I said between puffs.

"Edward," he said with a sigh.

"What do you want me to say? That I miss her so much it hurts? That I can't sleep or eat because I miss her so fucking much?"

"Go back to her," he encouraged.

I barked out a harsh life. "Right. Like she'd just let me waltz back into her life? Hardly. I can't go back to her. Not as long as some asshole out there wants me dead. I won't put her in danger again. I won't have her hurt."

"Don't you think she's hurting?" Dad asked.

"She's better off without me," I stubbornly told him.

He gave sighed then headed back inside, muttering about stubborn sons.

Despite my heartache, I knew that I had done the right thing.


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: First off, thank you so much for the reviews. Second of all, I accidently uploaded the un-beta'd chapter for Chapter 12. If you'd like to go back and read the corrected version please do so. There are some differences. Big thanks to SilverAnemone13 for pointing that out to me. Thirdly, a big thank you to PTB for helping me out with my commas and grammatical errors. And lastly, because of all the tragedy that's happened over the past week, my mind wasn't in the right place for writing. I managed to get this out, and I apologize for the shortness of the chapter. However, next chapter is half-done and will be from Bella's POV.

* * *

I was lost in the words that I was typing on the page. It had been a long, horrible few weeks, but I was finally able to write. The story wasn't what I normally wrote; it was far darker.

I was two hundred and seventeen pages into it, and I should have sent off the chapters that I had finished, but I couldn't. It would mean contacting Bella, and I wasn't ready for that. I couldn't do that, and I wouldn't do that. She was far better off without me.

The ringing of my doorbell scared the shit out of me, and I jolted, almost falling out of my chair.

Sighing, I did my best to ignore it, hoping that whoever was on the other side would get the hint and leave me the fuck alone. However, that wasn't the case. Whoever it was had taken to leaning on the damn thing.

Scowling, I shoved the chair away from the desk, and stomped down the stairs. It had sure as hell better be fucking important.

I threw the door open, ready to rip the asshole a new one.

I never got the chance. What I did get was a slap to the face, and a hard one.

"What the—"

"How dare you decide what's best for me! I'm a grown woman, and I'm perfectly capable of making my own decisions. God, you're such a fucking asshole sometimes!" Bella hollered as she shoved me hard.

I was so caught off guard that I didn't even try to defend myself.

"You. Are. An. Idiot! Do you hear me, Edward Anthony Cullen? Do you? I've spent the past few weeks waiting for you to get your head out of your ass, thinking that you'd come to your senses, but did you? No. You've got it in your head that you're somehow 'saving' me! That I'm better off without you, and I can't say I disagree with that right now."

She paused to take a breath, and I took that moment to slowly back up. I couldn't deal with her right now. It hurt too much to look at her.

"Don't even think about shutting that door in my face!" she shouted, and I cringed. I'd never seen her this mad, and I had to admit I was a bit scared.

She shoved me out of the way and stomped into my living room, wrinkling her nose when she saw the messy state that it was in.

Realizing that she wasn't going anywhere until she'd had her say, I shut the door. I prayed that it would be over quickly. .

Crossing my arms over my chest, I stared at her. She looked like shit. Don't get me wrong, she was still as beautiful as ever, but she had circles under her eyes, and she looked like she'd lost weight.

"What do you want?" I asked.

She whirled around, and I was afraid that she was going to hit me again.

"What do I want? What do I want?" she screeched. "I want you to stop being such a fucking asshole! I want you to tell me that you didn't mean what you said. I want you to admit that you still love me!"

I opened my mouth to tell her I'd meant everything I'd said, but I couldn't find the words.

She fisted her hands on her hips and gave me a glare. "That's what I thought. Do you really think that whoever hired James isn't going to hire someone else? Do you think that I can't still be used as leverage?"

Again, I didn't say a word. Just warily watched her. It was a good thing too, because she snatched up the remote off the table and sent it flying at my head. I managed to duck out of the way.

"You fucking son of a bitch!" she screamed as she hurled object after object at me.

"Shit! That fucking hurt, Bella!" I growled as a bowl that I kept junk in hit me in the head.

"Good!" she snarled before snatching up a vase and getting ready to throw it.

I rushed her, wrestling the vase from her and pinning her hands at her side.

"Stop!"

She struggled to get free, but I wasn't about to let her go. God knew, she'd probably go for the knives next.

"Please, Bella. Stop."

Her body went limp as she stopped struggling. It was then I heard the sobs, gut wrenching sobs that ripped me apart. My arms wrapped themselves around her.

Her tiny hands were fisted in my shirt, and her body shook from the force of her tears.

"Please, don't cry," I begged.

"I'll cry if I want to," her muffled voice retorted. "And don't tell me what to do!"

Now that I had her in my arms again, I didn't want to let go of her. It felt too good to hold her, and it hit me just how much I'd missed her. I felt tears form in my own eyes, but I blinked them back.

Eventually, she pushed away from me, wiping her tears off with the back of her hand.

"Well, I've said what I needed to, and it seems as if you haven't changed your mind. I guess I'll be going," she said, and I began to panic as she walked toward the door.

"Don't go," I begged quietly.

She turned to face me. "Why should I stay?"

"I need you," I admitted, not only to her but to myself as well. Until I'd seen her, I hadn't realized how badly I needed to be with her.

"Not good enough," Bella said, opening the door.

I rushed forward, shutting it and beggining to babble. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry for hurting you and making you unhappy."

Bella nodded. "I have no doubt you're sorry."

"It's just ..." I began. "It's just that I have to keep you safe. I'm better off alone so that the Hunters of the world can't hurt you."

Bella shook her head at my words. "You're an ignorant fool," she said as she shoved me away from the door, opened it, and walked down the steps.

For a moment, I stood there, shocked. I watched her walk away and realized that I couldn't let her go again.

"Please don't walk away," I begged.

Her shoulders drooped, and she let out a sigh before facing me.

"I'm not the one walking away, Edward. You're the one that did that. Remember?" she said as climbed into her car.

With tears in my eyes, I watched as she started to back down the drive. I knew that if she left this time, I'd never recover. Hollering her name, I chased after the car, slamming my hands down on the hood when I caught up to her.

Her expression was one of shock as she looked at me through the windshield.

"Please, Bella! Please, give me another chance," I practically sobbed. "I was so wrong."

After what seemed like hours, she nodded and put the car in park. Slowly, she got out and came to face me.

"I'll stay for a while, but we have some serious talking to do."

Fifteen minutes later, we were seated on the couch, cups of coffee in our hands as Bella began to talk.

"You hurt me horribly, Edward. I want you to know that."

I nodded, knowing it was true. It pained me terribly.

"At first, I thought you'd said those things because you were upset and in shock. I truly expected you to contact me after a few days, but when you didn't, I realized that you were serious."

She took a sip of her coffee before she continued. "I'm so angry with you, Edward. No one, and I mean no one, has ever hurt me as badly as you did. I can't sleep. I can't eat. I'm barely living. You were my everything, and you threw it away. And for what?"

"To keep you safe. I have to keep you safe. When James took you, my whole world collapsed. If something bad had happened to you, I don't think I would have survived it," I tried to explain.

"But something bad did happen to me. You broke my heart. Did you stop to think about how badly that would hurt me?"

I shook my head. I had known that it would hurt her, but not to the extent that it had.

"You hurt me worse than James did," she said, and her words hit me like a blow to the gut.

I felt like I couldn't breathe.

"The thing is, Edward, that if someone wants to hurt you, they will find a way to do it. Whether they come after me, after your family, or after you. Pushing away the ones you love isn't going to keep them safe. It's only going to hurt them. You need to realize this."

My mind was still reeling over what she'd said.

"Edward?"

I looked at her, and the tears that I'd been fighting back started to fall as I mumbled apology after apology. She was right. She usually was. I'd messed up horribly, and I was afraid that there would be no way to fix things.

Bella set her cup down and wrapped her arms around me.

I leaned into her, burying my face in the crook of her neck, and inhaling the scent of her. God, I'd fucking missed her. I gripped her tighter, unable to let go.

I don't know how long we sat there, but eventually Bella pulled away.

"Edward?"

"Yeah," I asked, my voice a bit hoarse.

"_If _we get back together, you can't pull this shit again. I mean it. I refuse to have my heart broken more than once. I don't think I could handle it."

I heard her, but all I could focus on was that one little word. If. _If_ we got back together. That meant that she wasn't sure she wanted to. Not that I could fault her. I'd been a fucking prick.

"I can't apologize enough, Bella. I know that you probably don't believe me, but I'm sorry. I was just so scared. Hell, I still am. Detective Beckett still doesn't know who hired James, and it terrifies me to know that that person is still out there."

She nodded. "I get that, but don't you think that I'm scared too? Do you have any idea how terrifying it was being in New York knowing that you were here and possibly being hunted?"

Of course my dumb ass hadn't thought about that either. Big surprise.

The next few hours were spent talking everything out. There was yelling, mostly from Bella, and more than a few tears were shed on both of our parts. We came to the agreement that we'd try to be together again, but I was warned that I was on probation. I was just relieved that Bella had taken me back, even if it was on a probationary period. I sure as fuck didn't deserve her. She agreed with me.

"I've got to go," she informed me. "Charlie's waiting for me."

"He knows you're here?" I asked, a bit surprised.

"Who do you think suggested I come down here and straighten your ass out?"

I shrugged. I hadn't given it much thought.

"Between Charlie, your mother, and your sister, I was strongly encouraged to give you another chance. I almost didn't. I was ready to leave it be, and then Charlie brought up the fact that you men tend to try and decide what's best for us women. And I thought, he's right. Who were you to decide what's best for me?"

I could see she was getting worked up again, but I didn't dare interrupt. I'd done that earlier, and she'd punched me in the arm. Hard. She was feisty as hell when she was mad.

"I'll talk to you later," she told me, and I watched as she walked out the door.

After Bella left, I was at a loss as to what to do. I wasn't in the mood to write anymore, and my house suddenly seemed like a prison. Grabbing my keys, I headed out to my car and drove around until I ended up at my parents' house.

Mom was thrilled to see me, and even more thrilled when I told her that Bella had stopped by.

"I knew she would. I hope she read you the riot act, and you'd have better have apologized."

"She did, and I apologized. Our relationship is back on for a trial period. She said it's going to take time to trust me again."

"Of course it will. Boys. You're all so stupid sometimes. Your father did something similar when we first started dating."

Mom then proceeded to tell me about a time when Dad had decided that they shouldn't be together while he was going through medical school.

"Carlisle thought that I couldn't handle him being gone so much, so he decided to break things off. I set him straight. I don't know why you all think you know what's best for us," she said, shaking her head.

I didn't know either, but I'd learned that I was wrong in thinking that way.

* * *

Bella had been in Forks for two weeks, and our tentative relationship was going as well as could be expected. It was like being in a new relationship all over again. I took her out on dates where we talked, but there was an uncomfortable distance between us.

I'd known that we wouldn't jump right back where we'd left off, but I hadn't realized how hard it would be to start over from scratch.

I was in my car heading to Charlie's house to pick up Bella when my phone rang. I noticed it was Detective Beckett, so I answered it immediately.

"Cullen."

"Detective Beckett here. I've got some news, although it might not add up to much," he said.

I signaled and pulled off on the side of the road, so I could give him my full attention.

"What is it?"

"While we were interrogating James again, he mentioned the name Jonathan before shutting up. Does that name ring a bell?"

It was a common name, but I knew a few Jonathans.

"Um, I had an old friend from college named Jonathan, and Tanya's father's name is Jonathan."

"Your ex-father-in-law?"

"Yeah."

He told me he'd get back to me and quickly hung up. He couldn't seriously think that Tanya's father was the guy who hired James. Jonathan was a nice guy, if not a bit pathetic. I just couldn't picture him as a man who would hire a killer.

I pulled back on the road, and ten minutes later, I pulled into Charlie's driveway. He'd given me one hell of a talking to when I'd first shown up at his door. He'd even threatened to shoot me and bury my body if I ever hurt Bella again.

"Hey, Edward," Bella greeted after opening the door to Charlie's house.

I hated that there was a distance between us. She was hesitant around me, not that I blamed her.

"Hey. I just talked to Detective Beckett."

She motioned me in, and once I was seated on the couch, I told her everything he'd told me.

"Oh my God. It makes perfect sense. Of course it's him," she said once I was done.

"What? Why does it make perfect sense?"

She gave a sigh. "Edward, what would you do if some guy broke your daughter's heart?"

"I'd kill the bastard," I growled without even thinking.

"Exactly."

_Oh_. Now, it made sense.

Since Charlie was working third shift, we decided to spend the night watching movies and eating pizza. It was like being on a high school date again. I didn't mind, though. Any time spent with Bella was perfect.

As we were watching some movie about aliens, I realized that Bella had missed two weeks of work.

"How did you get time off of work to come out here?" I asked.

"I quit," she told me.

I stared at her, flabbergasted. She loved her job.

"Why would you do that?"

"Bree's pretty much destroyed Volturi. She's implemented all kinds of ridiculous rules and has been letting tons of people go. You should've gotten an email notifying you that you had a new editor."

"I saw an email from Volturi but didn't read it," I admitted.

"You should. You'll need to know who to send manuscripts to."

I couldn't have cared less at that point who my new editor would be. I was more concerned about Bella being unemployed.

"What are you going to do?"

"I applied for a few editing positions in Seattle. I've got an interview Monday with New Moon Publishing."

I loved the idea that she'd be closer to me if she got the job in Seattle, but I also hated that she was so ready to move on with her life. I couldn't tell where our "relationship" was going, if anywhere, and it scared me to think that she'd dump me once she moved to Seattle. Maybe she would decide I wasn't worthy of her, which was true. Maybe she'd decide that she could find someone else to love. Someone who wasn't an asshole.

"Edward?"

I looked up at her.

"You okay?"

I shook my head. "You're going to leave me if you get the job in Seattle, aren't you? Not that I blame you, but—"

"What the hell are you talking about?" she interrupted.

"You're going to move to Seattle and realize I'm not worth it. You can have a fresh start there," I mumbled.

"Oh, hell no! We aren't doing this shit again, Edward! You don't decide what's best for me. Got that, mister?" she shouted, jabbing a finger into my chest.

I nodded, a little afraid of her.

"I told you I'd give you a second chance, and I have been. I'm sorry it's not moving as fast as before, but you really hurt me and it's going to take time for me to forgive you. But this idea that I'm going to dump you when I move to Seattle, if I move to Seattle, is beyond ridiculous. So, get it out of your freaking head!"

I nodded again, terrified that if I didn't agree she'd grab one of Charlie's hunting rifles and shoot me.

Taking a deep breath, she changed the subject and asked how my writing was going.

"It's okay. It's a lot darker than what I'm used to writing. But, it's good. I like where the story is going."

"Good. Now, you need to send off chapters to your editor."

"The only editor I want is you. I don't want to work with anyone else," I grumbled, thinking that if Bella got a job with New Moon, I could switch to them. I'd fulfilled my contractual obligation with Volturi and published my Jacob Green books with them. Any new books that I wrote weren't covered under a contract with them, and if things at Volturi were as bad as Bella said, then I wouldn't want to be with them anyway. I decided I'd call Marcus the next day and ask his opinion.

* * *

Wednesday afternoon, I got a call from an ecstatic Bella who told me she'd been offered the job at New Moon. I was thrilled for her and decided to take her out for dinner to celebrate.

"Edward!" she gasped when we pulled up in front of Antonio's. "This is too much!"

Antonio's was _the_ place in Seattle. People made reservations months in advance to be able to eat there. But not me. I knew the owner pretty well, and I felt a bit smug as we were seated right away.

"Nonsense, Bella. I only want the best for you," I told her as I held out her chair.

We ate an amazing, if not expensive, meal and had a fantastic time. We seemed to have gotten past the awkwardness that had been present since we got back together. We talked and laughed like we had before I'd broken up with her.

After dinner, we drove back to Forks making small talk with Bella telling me she needed to find a place in Seattle. I told her that my mother would be more than willing to help her find a place. After all, Mom knew all kinds of people in the real estate world.

Since Bella had come back to Forks, she, my mother, and Alice had spent loads of time together. It had worried me at first, thinking that perhaps the three of them were plotting my demise, but now I was glad to know that my girlfriend loved my family.

At least, I assumed she was my girlfriend again. We hadn't put labels on our relationship, but it did seem to slowly be getting stronger.

I pulled into Charlie's drive and walked Bella to the door. Gazing down at her in the moonlight, I couldn't help but be stunned by her beauty, and I couldn't resist kissing her. The only kisses that we'd given had been chaste the past few weeks, but this one wasn't. This one was hot, passionate, and full of fire. My tongue swept into her mouth, dueling with hers before retreating. I was afraid for a moment that I'd pushed too far, but thankfully she reciprocated.

Slowly, I pulled my mouth away from hers, needing to breath. Her lips were swollen, her face flushed, and her heavy breathing. I was glad to know that she was just as affected as I was.

"I've missed that," she said quietly.

"Me too," I told her as I tried to discreetly adjust myself. The only sex I'd had in months was with myself, and I missed being surrounded by Bella's hot, wet—

"Goodnight, Edward," Bella said, interrupting my thoughts.

I kissed her again and watched her walk inside, sighing as I realized that I'd be taking myself in hand again.

Once I got home, I climbed up the stairs and decided to take a shower to relax before bed. I'd just finished washing my hair when images of Bella in the shower came to mind.

Her hot, soapy, wet body pressed against mine. Her perfect tits cupped in my hands. My fingers thrusting into her wet heat as she screamed my name.

I wasn't surprised to find myself fully aroused. I'd been hard ever since Bella and I had reunited. Reaching down, I cupped my balls in my hand, rolling and squeezing them before moving up to my cock. Grasping it firmly in my hand, I stroke it lightly a few times before grasping it harder. It doesn't take long. A few strokes later, I was hollering out Bella's name as I painted the tiles of my shower tiles with my release.

Once I was done in the shower, I got dressed in a pair of old boxers and made my way to my bed. As I was lying there reading, I saw that I had a message on my cell. I'd turned it off when we'd been at the restaurant, not wanting any interruptions during my date.

"You have one new message," the mechanical voice told me.

"Daddy's after you," Tanya's voice said before hanging up.

* * *

a/n: I told you I believed in HEA (although we're not completely there yet). Now, some of you might think Bella caved too easily, but I'm not so sure she did. As always, let me know what you thought.


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: I hope everyone had a good holiday and has a save and fun New Year. I will be spending my New Year the same place I spent Christmas. At work. Lucky me. One of the joys of working for an Internet company is that they never close.**

**Thank you all for the wonderful reviews and your patience while I get my chapters out. A huge thanks to PTB for their awesome Beta skills!**

**We'll be back to EPOV next chapter.**

* * *

**BPOV**

When Edward had broken up with me, I'd been stunned and furious. I figured it was just the shock of everything talking. I was wrong. I waited for days for him to call me and tell me he hadn't meant what he'd said, but he never did.

Time dragged by, and I found that I couldn't concentrate on work. I couldn't sleep or eat. I essentially became a zombie. I functioned at the most basic of levels, but that was it. My co-workers and friends knew something was off, but they assumed it had to do with being kidnapped. It didn't.

As if him breaking up with me wasn't bad enough, work had become a nightmare as well. Bree had taken over and made our working lives hell. Rules upon rules had been implemented, but it was when she let Angela and Ben both go that I'd snapped. It didn't matter to Bree that they worked in different departments. All that mattered to her was that they were engaged and worked in the same place. Angela had told me that Bree had informed her that one of them had to leave or they had to break up. Neither of them wanted to do either, so Bree got rid of both of them. I wasn't convinced it was legal for her to do so.

Day after day, people who had been with the company for years were fired and sent packing. It seemed as if Bree wanted to get rid of the old and bring in the new. Every person that she hired to replace someone seemed to be a friend of hers or a friend of a friend. She was ruining the company and couldn't care less.

I was barely hanging in there, and with Angela gone, I dreaded going into work. I was now surrounded by stuck-up jerks who didn't have a clue as to what they were doing. I wasn't the only one upset with the changes. Our clients were furious and more than a few authors were leaving the company.

So that fateful day, I walked into the office, looked around my cubicle and at the strangers surrounding me and realized I didn't want to be there. Grabbing my empty trash can, I started shoving stuff from my desk into it.

Once my desk was clear, I headed to Bree's office. Her secretary told me she was in a meeting, so I headed back down to my desk and typed up a resignation letter and emailed it to Bree. Then, I grabbed the garbage can and walked out of the building.

By the time I got home, I was a bit shocked by my own actions. I couldn't believe what I'd just done. I'd quit my job. I wasn't going to be able to afford my rent or groceries. Not that I'd been eating much lately.

Without thinking about it, I pulled out my phone and called Charlie.

"Bells! How are you holding up?" he asked.

All it took was hearing his voice for the tears to start. How in the world he understood me through my sobs was beyond me, but he did. He listened as I told him about quitting my job, about missing Edward, about barely surviving.

"Now don't take this the wrong way, but have you thought about talking to a therapist?" he asked.

I nodded even though he couldn't see me.

"My friend, Angela, suggested that I do that. I just haven't gotten around to it," I told him.

We talked for an hour, and before he hung up, he told me that he'd run into Esme, and she'd mentioned that Edward looked horrible and was miserable.

"Good. It serves him right," I said.

"Now, Bells, I'm sure he's hurting as much as you are. I know what he did hurt you horribly, but he thought he was doing what was right. And before you get upset with me, I'm not defending him. Just explaining where he's coming from. We're male, Bells. We tend to think we know what's best for the women in our lives."

"You have a woman in your life?" I asked, focusing on that and not on the other stuff he'd said.

"Uh …"

"Charles Swan! You answer me right now!" I demanded.

"I may be seeing a woman from the reservation. Uh … her name is Sue Clearwater. She's the widow of my old friend Harry."

"Good for you."

I was happy for him. From what I'd gathered and been told, Charlie had been alone since Renee had left him.

After promising Charlie I'd talk to someone about all the things going on in my life, I hung up.

I puttered around my apartment before sitting down with my laptop to begin a job search. I found several editing jobs across the country and thought for a bit about moving. As much as I loved New York, it would be nice to find a job in a city that wasn't so expensive.

* * *

One month, one week, and three days after Edward had broken up with me, I was still trying to figure out my life. I was living off my savings and was quickly running out.

Charlie had suggested that I stay with him in Forks for a while, but the thought of being so close to Edward and not being able to see him was too much for me. I was afraid that if I was within driving distance of him, I'd go and beat the shit out of him. Not that he didn't deserve it.

I'd gotten the surprise of my life when, earlier in the afternoon, I'd gotten a call from Esme. She told me that just because her son was being an ass, didn't mean that she still couldn't talk to me. I had to admit that I'd missed talking to her. I saw the mother in her that my own never was.

When I'd mentioned that Charlie had suggested I stay in Forks for a while, Esme had jumped on the idea. She thought it would do me good and asked me to give Edward another chance.

"I don't think I can," I'd told her. "He broke my heart. He doesn't want me anymore."

"He's an idiot, Bella," she'd said. "Stupid males trying to tell us what to do. It would serve him right if you came back and gave him a tongue lashing."

Of course, that caused images of Edward's tongue to come to mind. I tried to rid myself of the images, but they stuck around long after my talk with Esme.

However, the more I pondered over it, the more I realized that Edward needed to have his ass kicked. _How dare he fucking break up with me when I knew he still loved me!_ My mind set, I called Charlie back and told him to fix up a room for me.

Afterward, I called my landlord and let him know I was leaving. He was fine with it and had someone set to sublet the place almost immediately.

Three days later, I had shoved clothes into bags, books and random junk into boxes, and cleaned the place. I'd dropped stuff at the local Goodwill and had my furniture put into storage.

Grabbing my suitcase and carry on, I took one last look at the apartment before heading out to catch a cab to the airport. I felt a sense of sadness, but it was time for a change.

* * *

"Bells!" I heard Charlie call, and I rushed toward him, throwing my arms around him.

My relationship with Charlie had only gotten stronger since that first time I'd talked to him on the phone. I was extremely angry at Renee for lying to me about Charlie and not allowing me to have a father. I was also mad at myself for buying into her lies.

I hadn't heard from her despite the many messages that I'd left. I'd pretty much given up hope of having her call me back and had decided that it wasn't worth worrying about.

"It's good to see you," Charlie said, returning my hug.

The drive to Forks was quiet, and I was glad that Charlie didn't feel the need to fill the drive with endless chatter.

Once we'd parked in the driveway of his house, he grabbed my suitcases and began carrying them inside. I'd been to his house a few times when I'd come down to visit Edward, but I hadn't spent a whole lot of time there.

After I got settled in, Charlie informed that he had to go into work. I nodded and waved him out the door before pulling out my phone and calling Esme. She was thrilled that I was in town and offered to take me to dinner with Alice.

I gladly accepted. I'd missed the both of them.

A couple of hours later, the three of us were eating at a nice restaurant in Port Angeles.

It felt so good to see the both of them and they had been delighted to see me. I'd been wrapped up in hugs which I had returned.

"You need to kick Edward's ass," Alice told me over appetizers. "I'm serious. Who the hell does he think he is deciding what's best for you?"

I nodded, feeling the effects of the wine I was drinking. "You're right. He does deserve to have his ass kicked. Why are boys so freaking stupid?"

"No idea, but Carlisle attempted the same thing with me once," Esme said, causing Alice and I to stare at her.

"What?" we asked.

Esme nodded. "Oh, yes. He was just starting med school and decided that I wouldn't be able to handle it, so he tried to break up with me. It didn't work."

I was stunned. Carlisle seemed like such a reasonable person. It was hard to believe that he tried to pull the stunt that Edward had. Maybe it was a genetic defect.

The next morning when I woke up, I had a good angry going on. I'd spent most of the night thinking about what Esme, Alice and Charlie had said. I wasn't going to accept Edward's reasons for breaking up. If you loved someone, you didn't push them away.

After getting showered and dressed, I borrowed Charlie's car and drove toward Edward's house.

The asshole was going to be in for one hell of a rude awakening.

I pulled the car behind Edward's Volvo, got out and stomped my way up the steps. I hoped like hell that I was going to wake the fucker up. I leaned on the doorbell until he yanked the door open.

He was a sight for sore eyes despite the fact that he looked like shit. Dark circles were under his eyes, he smelled of cigarettes, and he looked like he'd lost weight.

He opened his mouth to bark something out and rage welled up inside me. Next thing I knew, I'd slapped him as hard as I could.

"What the—" he began, a stunned look on his face.

"How dare you decide what's best for me! I'm a grown woman, and I'm perfectly capable of making my own decisions. God, you're such a fucking asshole sometimes!" I hollered as I shoved him as hard as I could.

"You. Are. An. Idiot! Do you hear me, Edward Anthony Cullen? Do you? I've spent the past few weeks waiting for you to get your head out of your ass, thinking that you'd come to your senses, but did you? No. You've got it in your head that you're somehow 'saving' me! That I'm better off without you, and I can't say I disagree with that right now," I continued to yell, not realizing just how angry I was with him.

I watched as he began to close the door and something inside of me snapped. I wasn't leaving until I'd said my piece.

I snapped at him, telling him not to even think about closing the door. I shoved my way past him and grimaced at the state of his living room. It looked like it hadn't been cleaned in ages, and it smelled of smoke. I wrinkled my nose, a bit disgusted that he was living in such filth.

I turned to face him as he basically told me to get on with it. I was a bit stunned by his callous attitude and that was when I started throwing things at him. Soon, the air was filled with flying objects and screams. I raged and yelled until he snatched a vase out of my hand and pinned my arms to my side. That was when the turmoil of emotions that I'd been feeling erupted, and I broke down. Sobs tore from me as I buried my face in his shirt.

A long time later, after tears had been shed and words had been yelled, we managed to talk about everything. We agreed to try to have a relationship again, but I told him we wouldn't be picking up where we'd left off. We couldn't. He had to gain my trust again, and it was going to take time.

So, we began the slow process of dating and getting to know one another again.

There were moments where there was an uncomfortable silence or an awkward moment, but we were slowly moving past those. And as much as I wanted to jump the man, I knew we couldn't fall back into bed right away. Besides, I was enjoying getting to date Edward. We went out several times a week, and he was the perfect gentleman. Not once did he try to pressure me into bed. Hell, he'd just started kissing me again.

Things were going good, and I'd even been offered a job in Seattle at a publishing house where I'd applied. I'd start in two weeks which meant that I needed to find a place in Seattle and soon.

Edward had been thrilled when I'd told him the news and had taken me out for a fancy dinner, and the night had ended with a much needed and wanted passionate kiss. God, I'd missed those kisses of his.

Later that night, after relieving the tension that Edward's kiss had left with me, I woke up to the sound of my phone ringing.

"Hello?"

"Tanya called me," Edward's frantic voice said.

"What?" I asked, confused.

"Tanya left a message on my phone telling me that her father is the one after me," he explained, his voice going up an octave.

"Edward, calm down a moment. We already knew that this was a very real possibility. Now that Tanya's confirmed it, you need to let Detective Beckett know."

"He does. I called him," he told me.

"Good. Now that the police have a definite suspect, they can arrest him."

"Yeah, that's true," he said, his voice calmer than before.

"Did you want to come over?" I asked before I'd even thought about it.

"Uh … I don't think Charlie would appreciate me showing up this late at night."

I rolled my eyes. I knew that Charlie had threatened him and, apparently, Edward was taking it seriously.

"Charlie got called in. Come on over. You can sleep on the couch," I told him. As much as I wanted him in my bed, we weren't ready to take that step. Not yet.

Thirty minutes later, there was a knock on the door, and I found a disheveled but delicious looking Edward on the porch.

I ushered him in then led him over to the couch where he sat down with a sigh.

"Are you okay?" I asked, brushing a strand of hair off his head.

"I guess. I'm relieved to know who's been behind it all, but at the same time, I'm almost in shock. I knew that Jonathan being involved was a possibility, but …" he trailed off.

I nodded, knowing how he was feeling.

"Well, get some rest, okay?"

He nodded, and I couldn't resist leaning in and placing a gentle kiss on his lips. His hands came up to cup my face as he kissed me back. What I'd intended to be a quick kiss soon evolved into a full make-out session. Hands gripped hair, moans escaped from parted lips, and hearts pounded. Eventually, the need to breath overrode my need to kiss him, and I reluctantly pulled away.

"Let me get you a pillow and blanket," I managed to say before escaping up the stairs.

I took a moment to gather myself as I collected the pillow and blanket from my room before heading back downstairs.

"Here you go," I said, holding the items out for him.

"Thanks," he said, his lips slightly swollen from our kisses.

I'd been in bed for about hour, unable to fall asleep because I felt bad that I'd made Edward sleep on the couch. It wasn't the most comfortable of couches, and Edward was a tall guy. Heaving a sigh, I climbed out of bed and headed back downstairs where I found Edward on the floor.

"Edward?"

"Yes?" he asked, his voice tired.

"Gather your stuff and come upstairs," I told him.

I heard him follow me up the stairs and into my room.

"Charlie will kill me if he finds me in here," he said.

I rolled my eyes as I shoved him toward the bed.

"Get in. Charlie knows that I'm adult, and I'm sure he's figured out that we've slept together. Now, get in and go to sleep. I'm tired," I responded as I climbed in.

At some point during the night, we gravitated toward one another. I woke up the next morning wrapped around Edward and feeling better rested than I had in months. I knew it was due to Edward.

Propping myself up on my elbow, I watched him sleep, marveling at his beauty.

"Why are you staring at me?" he mumbled, his eyes still closed.

"You're cute."

"No, I'm not," he said, rolling over and burying himself further under the covers.

Smiling, I climbed out of bed and went to make some coffee. A quick look outside showed that Charlie wasn't home yet, and I knew that would relieve Edward a bit.

Once the coffee was made, I poured two cups and headed back upstairs to wake Edward up.

We sat in my bed talking while drinking our coffee and discussing our plans for the day.

"I'm going to Seattle with your mom today to look at apartments. Did you want to come?" I asked him.

"I can't. I've got to finish up a chapter that I'm writing and send it off to my new editor," he told me.

"Who is it?"

"Embry Call."

I almost toppled my coffee. Embry Call was the name of the guy who owned New Moon Publishing and my new boss.

"What?"

Edward set his cup down on the nightstand before he spoke again. "I'm done with Volturi. I liked them when you and Marcus were there, but the new editor they set me up with was horrible. She was rude and overly suggestive, and I had no contractual obligation to them anymore, so I moved on. I researched New Moon after you mentioned applying there, and I talked with Embry for a while. He seems like a decent guy."

I didn't know what to think. _Was the only reason I got the job there because I was dating Edward? Had he even mentioned me to them?_

As if he could read my mind, Edward was quick to assure me that he hadn't mentioned me at all when he was talking to them. He'd just told them he needed a change and that he'd heard good things about the smaller company.

I felt better upon hearing that. I didn't want to get a job because of the person I was dating.

"It's up to you if you want to tell him that you're dating me," Edward told me.

I figured I would once I started. Best to let my boss know that I was dating one the company's clients.

Five hours later, I was standing in the living room of a beautiful apartment in one of the classier neighborhoods of Seattle. Esme was talking to the realtor, a friend of hers, while I wandered around the living room. It was amazing, and the second I'd walked in, I'd wanted it. However, there was no way I could afford to live there. It just wasn't feasible.

"Well, what do you think?" Esme asked, approaching me.

"I love it!" I gushed. "But, there's no way I can afford it. Not right away anyway."

"About that ..." Esme began, and I looked at her.

"Esme!"

She held up a hand, effectively shutting me up, as she explained that the landlord owed her a favor, and the man was willing to cut the rent in half for the first six months. My mouth fell open in disbelief. It was too good to be true, and that had me worried.

"But—"

"Bella, sign the lease, at least for the first six months. I can guarantee you won't find a better deal," Esme told me.

So, I did just that. I signed a six month lease and put half of the first month's rent down.

"Now, you need some furniture," Esme said as we left the building.

"Oh, I've got stuff in storage in New York. I'll just have it sent here," I told her, still in disbelief that I held the keys to the awesome apartment in my hand.

As we reached Forks, I asked her if she could drop me off at Edward's, and she was more than willing. I thanked her and waved goodbye as I got out of her car and climbed the steps to Edward's porch.

I rang the doorbell and waited impatiently for him to open it.

"Hey," he said, wrapping me up in a hug.

I loved his hugs. I'd missed them when we'd been apart.

I hugged him back and told him that I'd found a place to live.

"That's fantastic!"

Pulling out my phone, I showed him pictures that I'd taken of the place and told him how his mother had pretty much coerced me into getting it. He didn't seem surprised at all that Esme had talked me into it and promised that he'd help me move my stuff in.

"Do you want to come over for dinner?" I asked him. "Charlie's working late again, and I was thinking of making steak and potatoes."

"I'd love that. Thank you," he said sweetly before pressing a kiss to my lips.

"Excellent. Now, I need to hit up the grocery store. Would you mind dropping me off at Charlie's?"

"Why don't we just go to the store together and then head back to Charlie's?" he asked.

"Are you sure? I don't want to distract you from your writing anymore than I already have."

"Babe, it's fine," he assured me.

I'd forgotten what it was like to grocery shop with Edward. It was like going to the store with a small child. The second my back was turned, something that wasn't on my list was added to the cart. It was usually junk food.

I let out a sigh as I saw a bag of Oreos sitting in the cart.

"Edward!"

"What? I like cookies," he muttered with a pout.

"Fine, but no more!"

Forty minutes, and several pouts later, we checked out and headed to Charlie's.

After I put the groceries away and gathered the ingredients I'd need for dinner, I sat Edward down with a potato peeler and a bowl of potatoes.

"Start peeling," I instructed.

"Yes, ma'am."

We worked in comfortable silence, and I enjoyed just knowing that he was there.

A few hours later, we sat down to a wonderful meal, at least judging by the way Edward was shoveling it in.

"This is fantastic," he said through a mouthful of food. "I haven't eaten a home cooked meal in forever."

I raised an eyebrow at that. "Weren't you just at your mother's last week?"

"Well, yeah, but Dad cooked. It wasn't that great."

After dinner, Edward insisted on cleaning up, and who was I to argue. I ran upstairs to put some comfortable pj's on and to find a movie for us to watch when the doorbell rang.

"Can you get that?" I hollered.

"Sure," he called back.

I heard him open the door, and then, I heard a voice that I hadn't heard in forever.

"Who the fuck are you and where the hell is my daughter?"

* * *

**a/n: Yeah, so it's a little cliffie. Next chapter is already started, and I hope to have it done sooner rather than later. As always, I love hearing what you have to say. Even those guest reviewers who like to bitch about everything (not all of my guest reviewers do that. Just the trolls, and they make me giggle).**


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: Thank you all so much for the awesome reviews last chapter. I'd also like to apologize for this chapter being late(r) than I had planned. I had the thing done and sent off to the betas by the first and thought I'd have it back quicker than I did. That being said, I'd like to thank the betas for correcting my crap. BTW, lemon warning in this chapter.**

* * *

"Well?" the woman asked as I stared at her. There was no doubt in my mind that this was Bella's mother, Renee.

"Well what?" I replied, blocking the doorway to prevent her from pushing her way in.

The woman gave me a glare before demanding to speak to Bella.

"I'll have to see if she wants to speak with you, although I'm going to advise her against it," I told Renee before slamming the door shut in her face and locking it.

I leaned back against the door as Renee continued to pound and demand to speak to Bella. I wasn't about to let that crazy bitch into Charlie's house. Bella had been through enough as it was. The last thing she needed was to deal with a psycho mother, not that I knew what was best for Bella. I'd learned my lesson on that.

"Who was at the door?" Bella called down the stairs.

"Your mother."

"What?" her shocked voice asked as she practically came tumbling down the stairs.

I put my hands on her shoulders to steady her once she reached the bottom.

"Your mother is on the other side of that door. She seems belligerent," I told her. Renee began pounding on the door again, confirming my assessment.

"I need to talk to her," Bella told me, and my first instinct was to say hell fucking no, but I didn't.

"Fine, but I want to be in the room when you do. She doesn't seem completely stable."

Bella nodded and reached around me to unlock the door. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door.

"Well, it's about fucking time. Did you expect me to stand out here all day, Isabella?" Renee bitched.

"It's wonderful to see you too, Mother. Won't you please come in?" Bella said, opening the door wider to let Renee in.

Renee walked into the living room, giving the room a look of disdain as she took in the stuffed fish hanging on the wall and the pictures of Emmett and Bella adorning the mantle and walls.

"I'm a bit surprised to see you here," Bella commented as Renee continued to look around.

"You wouldn't answer my calls, so I had no choice. You know, I don't have time to go traipsing across the country looking for you," Renee said with a scowl.

"Excuse me?" Bella asked. "I didn't answer your calls? It's the other way around, Mother. I've been trying to get a hold of you for months, but you never returned my calls!"

Renee waved a hand and told Bella to stop being so over-dramatic. "I have a life, Isabella. It doesn't revolve around you."

I opened my mouth to say something, but Bella shook her head. As much as it pained me, I kept my mouth shut and listened to Renee go on and on about how busy she was and couldn't be expected to drop everything to answer Bella's calls.

"Why are you here?" Bella asked, interrupting Renee's tirade.

"You left me a message telling me that you were moving in with _him_. I had to come stop you from making such a huge mistake. Has he hit you yet?"

Bella's demeanor changed from irritated and annoyed to pissed off. Like, fucking pissed off.

"Cut the crap, Renee. Charlie never hit you or me or Emmett, nor will he ever. Why did you lie about it?"

Renee sat down on the couch, looking at Bella. "You don't know what you're talking about, Isabella. You have no idea how violent Charlie can be. Don't believe me? Just wait. One of these days, he'll hit you and then you'll come crying to me."

I couldn't believe this woman. _How in the world __could she __just sit there and lie to our faces?_

Bella walked over to her mother and leaned down, getting in her face.

"Stop with the bullshit lies! Charlie never fucking hit you! Why did you lie about him? Why?"

Renee stood up quickly, almost knocking Bella over as she headed for the door. "You know, I came to see if you were okay and this is what I get? An ungrateful daughter who accuses me of being a liar. I don't have to put up with this."

Bella got to the door and locked it, then stood in front of the door, not allowing Renee to leave.

"Sit the fuck down, Renee. We're not done talking," Bella said in a cold voice, and for a moment, I was afraid that Bella was going to slug Renee. Hell, I kind of hoped she would.

Realizing that Bella was serious, Renee walked back over and sat down on the couch.

"I want an explanation, and I want it now!"

"Fine, but I want to talk to you alone," Renee said.

I shook my head. I wasn't leaving Bella alone with Renee.

"Edward stays," Bella told her.

Renee sneered at me as I gave her a smirk.

"Oh, I know all about you, Edward Cullen. I guess you could've done worse, Isabella. At least he's loaded. Although, he'll be cheating on you before you can blink. Men like him can't help it."

"You know nothing about me, Renee. Nothing," I said with a menacing smile that shut her up.

I stood back and watched as Bella paced, waiting for Renee to start talking.

The ringing of my phone startled all of us, and I walked a little ways away to answer the call. As I answered my phone, I made sure that I kept Bella and Renee in my sights.

"Edward, it's Detective Beckett."

Immediately, I was on alert.

"I've got some information regarding Jonathan Denali," he continued. "According to his wife, he just got back from a business trip in Florida, and she hasn't seen him since. He's closed out his bank accounts and hasn't shown up at work. We think he might be coming to you."

That didn't surprise me at all. I wouldn't be surprised if Jonathan showed up on my doorstep with a gun in his hand.

"I know I've told you this before, but please keep an eye out for anything suspicious or out of place. Have you seen anything out of the ordinary? Anything that doesn't seem quite right?"

The more I thought about it, it did seem odd that Renee showed up out of nowhere after months of Bella trying to get a hold of her.

Walking down the hall a bit, I told Detective Beckett about Renee, mentioning that she was from Florida, and it seemed a bit odd that she'd shown up out of the blue.

As he took down what little I knew about Renee, raised voices had me walking back into the living room. Renee and Bella were standing toe to toe, and Bella looked ready to take a swing at her mother.

I quickly told Detective Beckett that I had to go, that Bella and her mother were about to come to blows.

"You know nothing about Edward, Renee! Stay out of it. I'm in love with him, and nothing is going to change that!" she shouted.

"Don't be stupid, Isabella. He's just using you, and once he's done with you, he'll toss you to the side. You could do so much better. I know the perfect man for you. Just come to Florida and meet him," Renee told her.

Bella let out a harsh laugh. "Are you fucking kidding me? I'm not going anywhere with you, much less to Florida to meet some guy. Fuck that. I'll say it again. I'm in love with Edward, and that's not changing."

"I've been keeping an eye on that pretty rich boy. He's cheating on you. I've seen it. He was out to dinner the other night with a petite dark-haired girl. Dump him now and save yourself the grief."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. _What the fuck was Renee up to?_ Striding into the room, I got into Renee's face.

"That 'petite dark-haired girl' is my sister. I'm not cheating on Bella, nor would I ever. Whatever it is that you're trying to do, it isn't going to work. I think you need to leave," I told her, seconds away from grabbing her arm and dragging her out the door.

Bella nodded. "Edward's right. You need to leave, and please don't come back. If you do, I'll call Charlie. I'm sure he has a few things to say to you."

Shooting an angry look our way, she stomped toward the door. Bella and I watched to make sure she got into the car in the driveway and left. As she backed down the drive, I took a picture of the license plate.

I'd send it to Detective Beckett later.

"I'm sorry I left you alone with her, even if it was just for a few minutes. What did she say to you?" I asked her.

Bella sat on the couch, pulling me down next to her. I wrapped my arm around her shoulders, hugging her as she began to talk.

"Well, you heard her try to deny that she lied about Charlie, but she finally admitted that she'd lied. She said that she was afraid that Charlie would get custody of us, and she didn't want that to happen. I don't know why. It wasn't like she was mother of the year or anything."

I hugged her closer and waited for her to continue.

"When Emmett ended up staying with Charlie, she feared losing me or so she says. That was why she told me that Charlie was an abusive asshole who wouldn't hesitate to hurt me or even kill me. She warned me time and time again, even going as far as to say that Charlie was training Emmett to be just as abusive. I can't believe that I bought into her lies."

I pulled Bella on to my lap and pressed a kiss to her lips.

"Baby, you were just a little girl. How could you have known better? You had no reason to think that your mother would lie to you."

"I know, but it doesn't make me feel any better," she said with a sigh. "Then after she admitted that she'd lied about Charlie, she started in about you. It was really weird, Edward. She kept saying that she knew all about you and that you'd drop me just like you did Tanya."

I frowned as Bella kept talking.

"Well, you heard the rest of it. But, it was really weird and left me with a strange feeling. I mentioned that I was dating you, but I never told her your last name or that you were divorced. How did she know about Tanya?"

I took a deep breath before speaking. "I think I might have an idea, and you're not going to like it. That was Detective Beckett on the phone, and he told me that Tanya's father had gone to Florida on a business trip and hasn't been seen since. He's closed his bank accounts, and Beckett thinks that Jonathan will show up here."

"Okay, but what does that have to do with Renee knowing about Tanya?"

"Your mother lives in Florida, and Jonathan just happened to be in Florida on a 'business' trip. Perhaps, they somehow got together and discussed you and me. I know it sounds farfetched, but Beckett is looking into it. I mean, it seemed strange that Renee suddenly showed up, right?"

Bella nodded as she thought over what I'd said. Her tiny fingers played with the buttons on my shirt, and she let out a gasp when one of the buttons popped off.

"I'm sorry, Edward. I didn't mean to do that."

I shook my head. I couldn't care less about a button.

"Talk to me, babe."

"Do you really think that Renee is connected to Tanya's father? Is that even possible? I mean …" she trailed off.

"I don't know, love. I really don't. But like I said, Detective Beckett is looking into any possible leads."

We sat on the couch, both of us lost in thought, and didn't even notice when the front door open. Charlie's "hey" scared the crap out of both of us, causing us to jump.

"What's going on?" he asked, concern evident in his voice.

"Renee showed up," Bella told him.

Charlie's face was one of shock. He sat down heavily in the recliner and stared at Bella.

"What was she doing here?" he asked.

Between Bella and me, we told Charlie about Renee's visit and my far-fetched suspicions that Renee and Jonathan were somehow in cahoots. Charlie, however, didn't think it was all that far-fetched. He thought it was quite possible that Jonathan had found out about Bella from Tanya or Hunter and then hunted down Renee to warn her about me.

Before I left for the night, Charlie made me promise to be vigilant. I agreed then said goodnight to Charlie and Bella.

I made my way out to my car and drove home, keeping an eye out for any strange cars behind me. There were none, but I couldn't help but feel something wasn't right.

* * *

A week had passed since Renee's surprise visit, and it looked like she'd gone back to Florida or wherever. Charlie had been following up on her, telling us that her rental car had been returned and that it looked like she'd caught a flight out of Seattle.

I was relieved to say the least. Bella was getting ready to start her new job, and the last thing she needed was the added stress of her crazy mother.

"I still can't believe what a deal I got on this place!" Bella gushed as I helped her carry up some boxes to her new apartment. "The fact the owner was willing to cut my rent in half for six months is unbelievable."

Looking at her, I realized that she had no clue that the apartment building was owned by my family, and that my mother was the landlord. I'd promised no more secrets between us, so I had to tell her.

"Um … that's because—"

"What do you know, Cullen?" she asked, narrowing her eyes at me.

I was so fucked. I knew that she wasn't going to take what I told her well.

"Mom owns the building," I mumbled out.

"What?!" she screeched, and I winced when I saw the ire on her face.

"Yeah, the family owns the building, but Mom's the landlord," I told her, rubbing the back of my neck.

Bella's hands were fisted on her hips, and she looked so fucking hot. Not that I would mention that at the moment.

She yanked her cell phone out of her pocket and was on the phone with my mom in minutes. Not wanting to witness the anger that I was sure was to come, I ducked back downstairs to bring up some more boxes.

I was busy dragging a box full of clothes, when a glimpse of movement out of the corner of my eye caught my attention.

I turned around but didn't see anyone there. That didn't stop the hairs on the back of my neck from standing up. Looking around again, I locked the car and started back up the stairs.

I walked into the apartment in time to hear my mother's voice come over the phone. She was telling Bella that she wouldn't accept more than what they'd agreed to and reminded Bella that she'd signed a lease.

Sighing in defeat, Bella finally relented before handing me the phone.

"Hi, Mom," I said into the phone.

"Don't you 'hi, Mom' me? Why are you trying to get me into trouble with Bella?"

"Don't blame me. I didn't know that she didn't know that you were the landlord," I told her.

"Uh huh," she said, letting me know that she didn't believe me.

After agreeing to behave and to come over for dinner the next day, I handed the phone back to Bella.

It took a while for Bella to calm down, but once she did, she apologized for getting so upset. She told me how she truly was grateful that Mom had found the place for her and was willing to help her out financially. Hell, I would've given Bella whatever money she needed, but I knew that she'd never accept it.

We spent the afternoon putting away stuff, and it was almost bittersweet knowing that she would be so close, yet so far away. Granted, I could work from anywhere, so I might just have to make it a point to hang out in Seattle more often.

A little after three, the buzzer rang and the doorman informed us that a delivery truck was there to deliver Bella's new bed.

Forty minutes later, a queen sized bed with a brass frame was set up in her room. It looked so inviting that I couldn't help but flop down on it and groan in delight.

Bella giggled as she flopped down beside me.

"Thank you for helping me," she said, leaning over to give me a kiss.

"Hmm...no problem," I replied before deepening the kiss.

Somehow, I ended up with Bella straddling me as her lips devoured mine in a kiss, and I couldn't help but thrust up against her.

I let out a moan as she ground against me, and I could feel her heat through her jeans. I knew that we were taking things slow, but fuck! I couldn't take it anymore. I had to have her.

Slipping my hands under the back of her shirt, I began to tug it up, breaking the kiss to pull her shirt off. I almost expected her to protest, but she didn't. She resumed the kiss, moaning when I ran my hands up and down her back before unclasping her bra.

Sitting up, Bella tossed her bra off and immediately, my hands cupped her breasts. God, how I'd missed them. I'd missed the sight of them, the feel of them in my hands, and God, I'd missed her taste.

Leaning down, I gently took one of her hardened tips between my lips and sucked gently.

"Edward," Bella said, a low groan gracing her lips as she rocked against me.

I couldn't get enough of her and moved across her chest to take her other nipple between my lips. I went back and forth, touching, squeezing, sucking, and biting.

"Too many clothes on," Bella muttered, pulling me away from her chest.

She rolled off of me, and I watched in fascination as she shimmied out of her jeans, leaving her clad in a pair of sexy little panties.

"Are you going to get naked, handsome?" she asked as she stretched out on the bed.

I don't think I'd ever removed my clothes so fast. I was in such a hurry that I forgot to take my shoes off before trying to take my pants off and almost tripped.

Bella let out a laugh, and once naked, I pounced on her.

"What's so funny, Miss Swan?" I asked, tickling her which caused her breasts to bounce in a delightful way.

"No—nothing," she said between giggles.

Propping myself up on my elbows as I hovered over her, I took a moment to drink her in. She was so fucking stunning, and she had no idea.

Her small hand reached up to cup my cheek, and I leaned into her touch.

"I love you, Edward. I want you to know that never changed and it never will."

"I love you, too," I told her, unable to resist dropping a kiss on her lips. "Are you sure you're ready for this?" I asked. When she nodded, I reached down and tugged off her panties.

"Oh, yeah. It's been way too long, and I've missed this."

That was all the okay that I needed.

Trailing a hand down Bella's flat stomach, I stopped just shy of her beautiful pussy. I gently dipping my thumb into her folds before moving upward and rubbing my thumb over her clit.

"More," she demanded, spreading her thighs wider.

_Who was I to argue?_ I swept my fingers through her folds, teasing her, dipping one then two fingers into her tight warmth. God, she felt so fucking good, but I needed more. I needed a taste.

After a hard kiss to her lips, I started kissing my way down her torso, all while continuing to pump my fingers in and out of her.

As soon as my lips pressed against her swollen and wet lower lips, she grabbed my hair and begged for me not to stop. _Like that was going to happen. _I flicked my tongue over her clit, loving the sounds that she made and the way her fingers tightened in my hair.

Her taste was unbelievable. It was musky and just so Bella. It was everything, and I couldn't get enough.

I dove in for more, needing to bring my girl to orgasm, and I could tell she was close. Her legs began to tremble as I sucked her clit harder into my mouth as my fingers continued their ministrations.

"Edward!" she cried out as it finally hit her, and I pulled my mouth away so I could watch her. Her eyes were closed, her cheeks flushed, and she was calling out my name. I felt like a hero.

Once she came down, I removed my fingers from her, taking time to lick her essence off of them.

"I want you. Now!" she growled.

Spreading her legs a bit more, I settled myself between them and groaned as her wet lips touched my cock. I couldn't resist sliding my cock between them, loving the little noises she made each time my tip hit her clit.

"Stop teasing!"

Grinning, I gave her a kiss before sliding inside of her, and fuck! If it wasn't like coming home. I'd missed being inside her tight warmth so fucking much, and I was afraid that I'd blow before she came again.

Taking a deep breath, I did my best to not focus on the wonderful feeling of her. I had to make this last.

Once I felt like I could move without coming, I began to thrust into her slowly at first then faster and harder.

Her legs wrapped around my waist, and her heels digging into my back right above my ass as she pleaded for me to move faster.

Our bodies were covered in sweat causing us to slide against each other, but I gave her what she wanted. Hell, it was what I wanted too. After a few more thrusts, my thumb rubbing her clit, we both came, shouting each other's name.

I collapsed on top of her, barely remembering to roll off of her so I didn't squash her.

"Fuck, I've missed that," I managed to get out between labored breaths.

Bella laughed as she wrapped herself around me. "Me, too."

Dinner that night was cold Chinese food eaten naked in her bed. It was a great way to end the day, although I was hoping that Bella would let me stay the night. I didn't really want to drive back to Forks. Thankfully, Bella was more than happy to let me stay.

As she drifted off to sleep, I heard her say that she wanted me to stay forever. As I lay on my back staring at her ceiling, I thought about what she'd said. I loved my house in Forks, but I loved Bella more. If she wanted me to move in with her, I'd do it in a heartbeat. I hoped that she knew that.

* * *

Bella had been living in her apartment for a week, and I was missing her like crazy. I'd already driven up to Seattle twice so far, and I hated being separated from her, especially since Jonathan was still on the loose.

Sighing, I put out the cigarette that I'd been smoking and saved the document I'd been working on. Stretching and cracking my neck, I closed the laptop, shoved it into my carrier bag, and headed downstairs.

I grabbed my wallet and keys, locked and armed the house, and headed toward Seattle. It was pathetic that I couldn't seem to go more than a few days without seeing my girl. But now that we had reunited, our relationship seemed stronger.

Almost four hours later, I pulled up to the apartment building, greeted Colin the doorman, and headed toward the elevator.

Bella wasn't home yet, so I used the key that she'd given me and let myself in. I puttered around for a while before deciding to cook Bella dinner. Now, I wasn't the world's best cook, but I could make spaghetti.

The door opened a little after six, and Bella's face lit up when she saw me in the kitchen. I was greeted with a hug and a kiss and knew that I could get used to it.

"How was work?" I asked as I handed her a glass of wine.

She kicked her shoes off and curled up on the couch, sipping from the glass. "It was good. I really, really like it. It helps that my boss is super cool, and he's okay with the fact that you and I are dating."

"Yeah, Embry does seem pretty cool. He's personally handling my editing for the time being. You want to eat in here or at the table?" I asked her, putting some spaghetti and bread on her plate.

"Here, please."

We made small talk as we ate, both of us just enjoying being in each other's company.

"Edward?" Bella asked, setting her plate down on the coffee table.

"Hmm?"

I noticed that she was clasping and unclasping her hands, a sure sign that she was nervous.

"Would you move in with me? I mean, you're here all the time, and it would save you gas, and you can write from anywhere, and—"

"I'd love to," I interrupted.

It was almost comical how her jaw fell open.

"Really?" she squeaked.

"Yes, really. I can write anywhere, Bella, you know that. I went to New York with you—why wouldn't I move to Seattle with you?"

"I..." She shook her head. "Thank you."

"You never have to thank me. If anyone should be giving thanks, it should be me. Thank you for taking a second chance on me and for asking me to move in with you."

So, it was settled. By the end of the week, I was officially moved in, and I loved being able to see Bella every day.

Friday night, we'd come back from dinner when my phone rang, and I saw it was Detective Beckett.

"Detective?"

"Edward, I wanted to let you know that we've got some more information regarding Jonathan and Renee," he told me.

* * *

**a/n: As always, let me know what you thought.**


	16. Chapter 16

A/N: Thanks for all the awesome reviews! Also, a big thanks to PTB for helping me out! On you go!

* * *

Bella clutched my hand when she heard Detective Beckett say that he had information regarding both Jonathan and Renee. I knew that the last thing she wanted was to find out that her mother was somehow mixed up with a man who wanted me dead.

"What did you learn?" I asked, my voice tense.

Detective Beckett let out a sigh before he began to speak. "Apparently, Tanya found out that you were dating Bella, and in a fit of rage and jealousy, she told Jonathan. We're not quite sure how Jonathan found out who Renee was, but he did. He got her number and contacted her, and from what we've learned from his phone records, they've had lengthy discussions over the past couple of months."

Bella looked stunned.

"But why? Why would she talk to some man she doesn't know who calls her out of the blue?" she asked him.

"I can't answer that, Bella. I can tell you that your mother was dating a man named Phil Dwyer, and he was more than happy to inform us that Renee had gone off the deep end. He said that a couple of weeks ago a man showed up at their door matching Jonathan's description. The man told Renee that it was urgent that she see you and get you away from Edward."

"But—" Bella began before being cut off by Detective Beckett.

"I can only speculate as to what all was said, but I'm guessing that Jonathan told Renee about his plans to get rid of Edward, and if Renee wanted you safe, she needed to get you away from Edward."

"Why didn't she try and get me to leave Edward earlier? Why wait until now?"

"I don't know, Bella. Those are questions we'll have to ask her as soon as we track her down."

I frowned at his words. "What do you mean track her down?"

"Renee checked out of her hotel, but she never made her flight out of Seattle, and she's not in Florida. Chances are she's still around waiting to talk to Bella again. I've been in contact with the Seattle P.D., and they're going to patrol the area around your apartment."

I let out a growl at the thought of Renee being on the loose waiting to talk to my girl. If I had my way, Bella would never see Renee again.

"What about Jonathan? Have you located him?" I asked.

"We've got a good idea where he is. Tanya told us about some rental properties that he owns outside of Olympia. Officers have been sent over there as we speak. I'll keep you updated on what we learn."

We thanked him before I hung up the phone, and then I turned to face Bella. She was staring at her hands, wringing them together.

Gently, I reached over and cupped her chin, forcing her to look at me. Tears swam in her eyes, and it pained me to see her so upset. I pulled her onto my lap, cradling her close and pressing kisses into her hair. I couldn't lie and tell her everything was going to be okay, but I could comfort her.

"I don't know what to think," she said, her voice muffled against my neck. "I never would have thought my mother would be working with a man who hired a hitman. Then again, I guess I shouldn't be surprised, right? I mean, she did lie about Charlie for all those years."

I sighed as I rocked her gently. I didn't know what to say. "I guess the real reason Renee showed up was because, what? She doesn't want me to be a casualty when Tanya's father decides to go postal?"

"I guess so," I told her, not really having an answer, but it sounded plausible.

"I just want all this shit to be over. I want to start our lives together without any more danger lurking nearby. I'm tired of being scared and worried."

"Me too, love. Me too," I said, placing a gentle kiss on top of her head.

I was more than fucking ready for it all to be over as well. Part of me hoped that Jonathan made a move and soon. I was tired of waiting around for the fucker. Hell, if I didn't know that Bella would bitch a fit, I'd offer myself up as bait and call the asshole out. Instead, I was a sitting duck waiting for him to get me.

Getting up off of my lap, Bella told me that she needed to call Charlie and let him know what we'd learned. While she was doing that, I decided to give my folks a call as well.

Thirty minutes later, I finally got Mom off the phone. She was in full mother bear mode and wanted to hunt down Renee and kick her lying, pathetic ass. Her words, not mine, but I had no doubt that if my mother ever got a hold of Renee, she would, indeed, kick Renee's ass.

The remainder of our evening was spent working side by side on the couch. Bella had a pile of manuscripts in front of her, a pencil tucked behind her ears or in her hair, and her laptop was perched precariously on the edge of the coffee table.

I'd never gotten to really watch her work before, and it was fascinating. She talked to herself constantly while making notes here and there on the pages of the manuscripts. She chewed on her bottom lip when she was thinking, squinted and cocked her head to the side if something didn't add up or make sense, and would swear inventively when an author or a character did something stupid.

"Edward?"

"Hmm?" I answered, still staring at her.

"Am I bothering you?"

I shook my head. "Not at all. You're absolutely fascinating."

A faint blush rose up her cheeks. "I don't know about that. Anyway, I'm ready for a break. I was going to grab some ice cream. Do you want some?"

Putting my laptop down on the floor, I followed her into our kitchen and watched as she grabbed the carton and a spoon and headed toward the bedroom. An hour later, we lay in our bed, sticky and sweaty. I had to admit that licking ice cream off of Bella was the best way to eat it. Granted, our sheets were now as messy as were we.

"Shower?" I croaked out.

She nodded, holding her arms up to me. With a cocky grin, I scooped her up and headed toward the bathroom. It did a man good to know that he'd reduced his girl to jello. I set her down on the counter while I turned the water on for the shower.

"Mmm..." she moaned as I bent over to test the water before turning the shower on.

I shot her a smirk over my shoulder. "See something you like?"

She licked her lips, and I barely held back a groan. She was so fucking sexy. "Get over here, Miss Swan."

She hopped down from the counter, and I pulled her into the shower with me where we enjoyed mutual orgasms.

* * *

It had been a rough few days. Bella had been hit hard with the flu and had spent the past few days puking, which was almost enough to make me puke. I was a total vomit-phobe, and I wasn't afraid to admit it. When I'd noticed that we were low on crackers and ginger ale, I booked it out of the apartment to get some more. I felt horrible leaving her alone, but I couldn't take the sounds or smell much more.

I'd called Dad to ask him what to do after I had a minor freak out at seeing Bella so sick, and he told me that it had to run its course but to keep her hydrated. When I'd bitched about the vomit, he'd told me to suck it up and to just wait until I had kids.

That thought freaked me out more than Bella being sick. I totally wanted kids with Bella, but man, babies were fucking scary. They were these tiny little things that you had to feed, bathe, clothe, and try not to fuck up. It was the last bit that worried me the most.

Pulling myself out of my thoughts, I headed into the apartment building with a bag from the local pharmacy. I stopped to check the mail when I heard George, the doorman, say, "I'm sorry, ma'am, but you'll need to leave."

"No! I'm not leaving until I talk to my daughter!"

"Well, your daughter isn't answering, and I can't let you go up without her or Mr. Cullen's permission," George told her firmly.

I peered around the corner from where the mailboxes were, and sure enough, Renee was standing in front of the desk, arguing with George. As much as I wanted to confront her, I did what I'd been told to do and called Detective Beckett. Immediately, he transferred me to his liaison in the Seattle office, Detective Ryder. Within minutes, a police car pulled up outside the building, and two men walked in, one in a uniform and one in a suit.

The man in the suit, who I assumed was Detective Ryder, made his way toward Renee. He introduced himself, and then told her that she was coming with him. Needless to say, that didn't go well.

"Get your hands off of me! I've done nothing wrong! This is police harassment!" she screeched. Detective Ryder ignored her rant, handing her off to the uniformed officer before heading my way.

"You Cullen?"

"Yes, sir," I replied.

He explained that they would be taking her in for questioning, but chances were they wouldn't be able to hold her for long. I nodded, well aware of that.

"Myself or Beckett will give you a call when we learn anything," he said before heading outside.

I felt a sense of satisfaction as I watched them put the bitch into the back of their car. Turning back to my mailbox, I grabbed the mail, thanked George for not letting Renee in, and headed upstairs. As quietly as possible, I unlocked the door and crept in, not wanting to wake Bella. I set the mail down on the table next to the door and made my way into the bedroom.

Bella was passed out on the bed, all the covers and sheets having been kicked onto the floor. I sat down on the edge of the bed and ran a hand over her head. She was warm, but not nearly as warm as she had been.

"Hey, love," I said quietly. Slowly, she opened her eyes, blinking them a few times.

"Hey," she said in a raspy voice.

"I picked up some more ginger ale. Do you think you can drink a little?" She nodded, so I went to pour her a glass, and then sat with her as she slowly sipped it.

Later that afternoon, I carried her out to the living room so that I could air out the bedroom and change the sheets. I hadn't yet told her about Renee's arrest. I wasn't keeping it from her; I just didn't think it was what she needed to hear while she was sick.

Once the sheets were changed, the windows opened, and the bathroom cleaned, I headed back into the living room. She was lying on the couch, my phone in her hand.

"A Detective Ryder called for you. Said you should call him back," she said, holding the phone and a piece of paper out to me. Lifting her legs, I sat down on the couch, putting them on my lap before taking my phone and the paper.

"Your mom showed up in the lobby today," I told her. "I wasn't keeping it from you, I promise."

She nodded, gesturing for me to go on.

"Anyway, Renee got all pissed when George refused to let her come up, and I had just come back from the store. I called the cops, and they took her in for questioning," I explained.

"Call him back," she said, her voice still a bit raspy.

I called the number that Detective Ryder had left with Bella and waited impatiently for him to answer.

"Ryder," he barked.

"It's Edward Cullen. I'm returning your call," I said, putting the phone on speaker so Bella could hear as well.

"Edward, glad you called. We talked to Ms. Higginbotham, and she was uncooperative at first. Of course, once we threatened to charge her with accessory to murder, she sang like a bird," he said with a snicker.

"What did she say?" I asked, looking at Bella to make sure she was okay.

"She first heard from Jonathan Denali three months ago. He called to warn her about you. Sounds like he fed her a bunch of lies about how you were abusive and were going to break her daughter's heart."

I let out a low curse. I would never lay a hand on Bella. Never.

"She claims that she was terrified for her daughter, so she agreed to meet with him to figure out what could be done to stop the two of you from being together. Denali flew to Florida and met Ms. Higginbotham at her house. It was there that he told her how you had ruined Tanya's life and how he was going to ruin yours."

"Wait. He told her that he was going to have me killed?" I asked.

"According to her, Denali said that an attempt had been made on your life, but it had been unsuccessful. He then informed her that he was going to have to do it himself, and he didn't want Bella to end up a causality."

"Holy shit!" Bella said, and I agreed. That was beyond fucked up.

"Does my mother know where Jonathan is?" Bella asked.

"She says no. But she did give us the number to a disposable cell that he was using to contact her. We're checking up on it."

"So, what happens now?" I asked. "What happens to Renee?"

"We can charge her on obstruction of justice, but that's about it. She has agreed to testify against Jonathan once we catch him, but in the mean time, she'll be released on bail."

That was not what I wanted to hear, but the truth of the matter was, Renee hadn't committed any crimes that we knew of. We sat next to each other quietly for a while before Bella let out a huge yawn. Gathering her up, I carried her to the bedroom and tucked her in.

"Are you coming to bed?" she asked.

"I've got some writing I need to finish," I told her. Although I didn't know if I'd be able to concentrate enough to write and make the changes that were needed.

For the next three hours, I stared at the word document in front of me. I'd written and re-written the same four paragraphs and was getting nowhere. Heaving a sigh, I saved the document and shut down my computer.

I wasn't tired, but I was restless, so I spent a few hours cleaning the apartment. It was pretty clean to begin with, but I needed to occupy my mind. Eventually, the tiredness came and when it did, I slipped into bed next to Bella.

* * *

"I'm working on it, Embry! I'll have it back to you by the end of the week. Look, I would've had it done sooner, but Bella's been sick, and we've been dealing with her crazy mother," I growled into the phone.

"You're not going to go all diva on me, are you?" he asked.

I scowled as I ran a hand through my hair. "No, I'm not going all diva on you. I just haven't had time to make the changes that you wanted. I promise you'll have it by Friday."

After I hung up, I looked at the laptop in front of me, sighing as I began to make the changes and corrections that Embry wanted. In all honesty, I'd been too worried about Bella and the shit going on with Renee to even think about my deadline.

"Are you in trouble?" Bella asked as she slowly made her way over to the couch to sit beside me.

"Not really. With everything going on, work slipped my mind. I explained it to Embry and promised I'd have it done by Friday."

She nodded, curled up against me, and flipped on the TV when I went back to working. We sat in silence for an hour before her stomach let out a ferocious growl.

"Hungry?" I asked.

"Yeah, I'm tired of crackers and soup. I think I can handle something more solid now," she said.

I was relieved that she was feeling better. Bella being sick had taken a toll on both of us. After a dinner of cold cut sandwiches and chips, I took a break from work and cuddled with my girl while we watched some crime show on TV.

"Do you think Renee will really testify against Jonathan?" she asked during a commercial break.

"I don't know, babe," I told her truthfully as I twirled a lock of her hair around my finger. "I'm more concerned with the fact that she might not be telling the whole truth."

Bella turned her head to look at me. "You think she's lying?"

"It wouldn't surprise me. Look at everything else she's lied about. I think she knows more than she's letting on."

And I really did. It seemed to me that Renee caved in a bit too easily. I wouldn't be surprised at all if she joined Jonathan in his attempt to kill me. There was something about her that was just off, and I couldn't explain it.

"I really hope that she's being honest with the police," Bella said with a sigh. I hoped so too, but I had a tingling feeling on the back of my neck that told me that wasn't the case.

After Bella went to bed, I started rewriting part of the chapter that Embry wanted me to fix. However, after several attempts, I wasn't getting anywhere. Every time I rewrote it, it sounded worse and worse. Setting my laptop to the side, I rubbed my temples before getting up to fix a cup of coffee.

I was standing in the kitchen, looking out the window as I waited for the coffee to finish, when I noticed the silhouette of a man leaning against a corner of the building next to ours, smoking a cigarette. It seemed almost as if he was staring up at me, but I knew that probably wasn't true. Hell, we were several stories up. Regardless, it gave me a creepy feeling.

I puttered around the kitchen, but I would occasionally glance out of the window to see if the man was still there. By the time the coffee was done, the man had disappeared, and I felt a bit calmer. With coffee in hand, I headed back to the couch to try and get my work done.

Later that morning, I was woken up by Bella. I'd fallen asleep sitting up with my laptop on my lap. It was a miracle it hadn't crashed to the floor.

"Go to bed," Bella insisted, and I readily complied.

I woke up again around two in the afternoon and had a minor freak out when I found Bella gone. A text on my phone informed me that she was at work and for me not to worry. Right. Like that was going to happen. As long as Jonathan was out there, I would constantly worry about Bella.

After a quick shower and a bite to eat, I checked my calendar on my phone and realized that I had an appointment with my new publicist. Her name was Kim, and she was a friend of Embry's. I'd totally forgotten about the meeting and was thankful that I'd woken up in time. I sent a quick text to Bella letting her know where I was going to be, before heading out and fighting the horrible traffic that clogged Seattle's streets.

Twenty-seven minutes later, I pulled up in front of a large building a couple of blocks from New Moon Publishing. Inside, I showed my ID and was directed to the correct floor. I got out on the eighth floor and rushed toward the secretary's desk. I hated that I was a few minutes late. Normally, being late didn't bother me, but I needed new representation, and I didn't want to make a fucking tool of myself right off the bat.

"Edward Cullen?" the secretary asked. I nodded. She pointed to a door on the left and told me to go right in. I headed into the room and a found a middle-aged First American woman sitting behind a desk on the phone.

"Cullen?" she barked as I walked in.

"Yeah, sorry about being—"

"Sit!"

I complied, biting back the snarky comments I wanted to make.

"Yes, Embry, he's here. Yep, I'll talk to you later." She hung up the phone and gave me a long look that made me want to squirm in my chair. I felt like a kid who'd been sent to the principal's office.

"I don't tolerate tardiness, so from now on, be on time. Is that understood?"

I nodded. "I really am sorry," I said.

"Fine. Just don't do it again. Now, let's get started, shall we?"

Three hours later, I left Kim's office with a printed schedule of all my upcoming appearances and events.

I was set up to do an interview with Jon Stewart in a couple of weeks, and I was beyond excited. I couldn't believe that Kim had managed to set that up. He was one of those people that I admired. All I needed to do next was get on Jimmy Fallon and Conan. If Kim could pull those off as well, I'd buy her a new car. Hell, I'd buy her a fucking island. She told me she'd work on it.

The rest of my schedule was going to be filed with talk shows, radio interviews, and press releases to talk about the movie, _Hell Hath No Fury_, which was based off one of my books. It was due to be released in theaters in a couple of weeks, and I'd been given tickets to the premiere. I was excited, yet terrified. I'd written the script, but it was up to the actors to do justice to my characters, and I hoped like hell they hadn't fucked it up. Guess, we'd find out.

As I walked out of the building and back to my car, I got that strange tingling on the back of my neck. I glanced around but didn't notice anything or anyone out of the ordinary. Keeping an eye on my surroundings, I unlocked my car and got in. Glancing at the clock on the dash, I saw it was a little after seven and decided to pick up some Thai food on the way home.

I got that feeling on the back of my neck as I stood in line to place my order. Once again though, a look around didn't show anything suspicious. I headed back to my car and drove the thirty minutes home, parking in the underground garage before taking the elevator up to our floor. Music floated through the door as I opened it, and I smiled when I saw Bella dancing around the living room.

"Hungry?" I asked, obviously scaring her and causing her to jump.

"Jesus, Edward! You scared the hell out of me!"

"Sorry, babe. What's got you in such a good mood?" I asked as I placed the containers of food down on the coffee table.

"Not only am I feeling tons better, but I've gotten another client to work with. I'm super excited to be taking on more responsibility."

"That's fantastic!" I told her, wrapping her up in my arms and kissing her.

As we ate dinner, I told her about my meeting with Kim and that I'd received tickets to the movie premiere.

"You will go with me, right?" I asked.

"If I can get the time off, I'd love to."

If I had to, I'd talk to Embry and make sure she got the time off. I wasn't comfortable leaving Bella alone while I was in L.A. If for some reason, she couldn't get the time off, then I'd see if she couldn't stay with my folks. Of course, Jonathan might be caught by then.

"Damnit!" I heard Bella yell from the kitchen after we were done eating.

"What's wrong?" I hollered.

"We're out of ice cream. I was in the mood for an Edward sundae."

_Hello_! I grabbed my car keys and told Bella I'd be right back, grinning at her laugh. I went to the small corner store that was around the corner and grabbed several cartons of ice cream and chocolate sauce. Back at the apartment, I parked in my usual spot and got out, grabbing my purchases and heading toward the elevator.

As I waited for the elevator to arrive, I heard footsteps and then felt something pressed against the back of my head.

"Hello, Edward."

* * *

a/n: Love to hear what you thought!


	17. Chapter 17

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews! You all rock! Big thanks to PTB for fixing my grammatical errors. Lots going on in this chapter so I'll let you get to it. But, I will let you know that I'm looking at about 3 more chapters before this is done.

* * *

_"Hello, Edward."_

The bag in my hand containing the carton of ice cream fell to the ground, and I barely registered the sound of the carton breaking open.

"Turn around slowly and don't try anything," Jonathan's voice warned.

Moving slowly, I did as I was told, and the man I came face to face with was a far cry from the man that I'd known for years. He'd aged poorly since I'd last seen him, and his eyes had a wild and manic look to them.

"You don't want to do this," I told him, wishing that I could get to my phone that was in my front pocket.

"Don't tell me what I want to do," he snarled, waving a gun in the air. "You hurt her, Edward. You hurt my little girl horribly. I warned you when you started dating her. I warned you."

He had. The first time I'd met him, he'd warned me that he'd hurt me if I hurt Tanya, but I hadn't given it much thought. Why would I? I had chalked it up to nothing but talk. I certainly hadn't thought that he'd seriously try to kill me.

"Jonathan—" I began, only to be cut off by his rant.

"She called me up in tears the day you asked for a divorce. I'd thought I'd heard her wrong. You loved my baby girl. You promised to love and cherish her. I figured it had to be a mistake, but it wasn't. You divorced her, and in doing so, you ruined her life."

Despite the fact that Jonathan had a gun, I was unable to keep my mouth shut. He needed to be set straight about his precious daughter.

"Your daughter cheated on me, Jonathan! She cheated, and cheating isn't something that I can abide with. Maybe if she'd been faithful, our marriage would have lasted, but—" I never got to finish my sentence.

With a roar, Jonathan hit me on the temple with the butt of the gun, and I went down hard, seeing stars. Warm, wet blood began to fall into my eyes, and I reached a hand up to brush it away.

"Shut the fuck up, Cullen! Just shut up! How dare you talk about Tanya like that?! How dare you spread your filth and lies!" he shouted as he paced back and forth like a caged animal.

He truly was off his fucking rocker. The guy had fucking snapped, and I was going to end up a casualty. I just hoped that someone would come into the garage and see him waving his gun around and call the police.

I made a move to sit up and found myself face to face with the barrel of a gun.

"Move and I'll kill you. I can't miss this close," he said, his voice deadly.

All movement on my end stopped. I didn't want to die. I finally had my shit together. I had a great career, a great family, and I was living with the woman of my dreams. The woman that I was planning on proposing to.

"I couldn't believe it when Tanya called to let me know that you were still alive. It was a hell of a shocker. There was no way you should have survived James, yet you did. You both did. But not this time. This time, you'll die by my hands and so will that whore of yours."

_Nobody called Bella a whore! Nobody!_ With a roar and a quickness I didn't know I possessed, I launched myself at him, knocking him to the ground. A shot rang out through the garage, startling both of us, but the struggle continued until he smashed me in the face with the gun.

I felt my nose break, and I let out a litany of curses as blood poured down my face.

"You stupid fuck!" Jonathan screamed as he came at me like a wild man. Blow after blow rained down on me, and I did my best to ward him off, but I was no match against him. He was fueled by his rage and hatred of me.

I managed to roll over on my stomach, and with one hand beneath me, got my phone out of my pocket. I had seconds before he realized what I was up to. I managed to unlock the phone and dial 911 before he rolled me over.

I stared up at him as he aimed the gun straight at my head.

"Say goodbye, Edward."

_Fuck that! _I wasn't going to lay there and let him shoot me. I reached out and wrapped my arms around his legs, knocking him off balance.

"Die, Cullen!" he screamed. "Fucking die!"

I could hear shots ricocheting off the concrete, car windows breaking, alarms going off, and somehow, miraculously, I didn't get shot. Not yet, anyway. Jonathan kept pulling the trigger until eventually I heard the clicking of an empty chamber. That sound seemed to take the fight out of him, and he lowered the gun, giving me the opportunity I'd been looking for.

Making a fist, I swung as hard as I could, punching him in the face repeatedly until someone pulled me off.

"Stop, Edward! Stop. He's done. We've got him," I heard Detective Ryder say.

I stood up with his help, shaking and disoriented. "What?"

"We got reports of shots being fired in the area, and then your call came through. We got here as soon as we could."

I barely heard him as my thoughts suddenly turned to Bella. "Bella! I have to get to her. He was going to kill her!"

"Calm down, Cullen. He can't hurt her," he told me, and I watched as they read Jonathan his rights and cuffed him.

"Please, I need to see her," I begged.

Sighing, Ryder told one of his officers to go get Bella while he finished taking my statement. Halfway through, his radio went off, and what I heard made my blood run cold.

"Sir, she's not here, and there are signs of a struggle."

My eyes narrowed and before anyone could stop me, I headed toward the patrol car where Jonathan was locked in the back.

"Where is she?" I screamed at him. "What did you do to her?"

Ryder pulled me away from the car, forcefully telling me to calm down. I clenched my fist in order to resist taking a swing at him. Who the fuck was he to tell me to calm down? His girl wasn't missing.

"Watch him," he ordered one of his officers before he opened the back of the patrol car and started to talk to Jonathan.

"He figures that Renee has her," Ryder informed me after he was done. "She was supposed to snatch Bella while he killed you."

I shook my head. "He said he was going to kill Bella."

"His plan was to kill you, then to go after Bella and Renee. According to him, Renee knows too much."

"Does he know where Renee took Bella?" I asked, unable to keep the hysteria out of my voice.

"We'll find her. Trust me."

Hours later, my nose was taped up, stitches were in my head, and there was still no sighting of Bella. Detective Ryder had allowed me to stay at the apartment with an officer manning the door while they continued their search. Mom, Dad, Alice, and Jasper had shown up, and we were currently sitting around my living room waiting. At least Charlie and Emmett were allowed in on the search.

"I don't believe that Renee would physically hurt Bella," Mom told me after a while.

"You don't know that. Renee is fucking nuts!" I snarled and immediately felt bad for snapping at her. Mom wasn't the enemy; she was just trying to help.

It had been five hours and thirty-nine minutes, when there was a commotion outside the apartment door, and I heard the most wonderful sound.

"Let me in! I live here!"

_Bella!_ I rushed toward the door, flung it open, and shoved my way past the officer. I'd never seen a more beautiful sight than Bella glaring at the officer, hands on her hips.

"Bella!"

She let out a gasp when she saw me before throwing herself into my arms. I held on tight, burying my face into her hair.

"Are you okay?" I asked, my hands moving over her body, searching for any signs of damage.

"Baby, I'm okay. I promise. The same, however, cannot be said for Renee," she told me, her eyes darkening before she began to explain to myself and Detective Ryder what had happened.

"It's my own fault," she said with a sigh. "I shouldn't have let her in, but she pleaded and told me she wanted to talk and apologize. I should've clued in on the fact that she showed up right after you left, but I didn't."

"It's not your fault," I told her, running my fingers through her hair.

"I just—" She sighed again. "I just wanted so badly for things to be right with her. She swore to me that she'd told the police everything and that she'd been looking out for my best interest. She seemed so sincere that I almost believed her, but something in her eyes was off. I went to call Edward but before I could, she came up behind me and put something over my mouth."

"Chloroform," Ryder muttered.

Bella nodded. "Yeah, I think so. After that, things went dark, and I woke up in a hotel room. I was confused and scared, but once I saw Renee everything fell into place. I waited until she turned her back, and I ran for the door. She tried to stop me, so I kicked her until she let go of me."

Bella then told us how she'd gone for help, alerting the clerk at the hotel that she'd been abducted. The police had been called, and Renee had been arrested.

"Is it really over with?" Bella asked me quietly later that night as we were in bed.

"The danger is over, but we've got months of trials ahead of us," I told her with a sigh, hugging her tighter.

"But no one is coming after us, right? No more death threats, no more kidnappings."

"None that I know of."

"Thank, God. I'm so ready to get on with our lives without all this danger lurking about," she told me, running a hand down my chest.

I caught her hand and brought it to my lips, placing a kiss on her palm.

"Marry me?" I asked before I realized what I'd done.

Bella's breathing hitched and froze for a moment before she sat up, the sheet pooling around her waist and giving me a delectable view of her breasts.

"What?"

"Marry me?" I asked again, grinning at the thought of Bella as my wife.

"Are you—are you serious?"

"I don't just go around asking women to marry me, Bella," I replied drolly.

She narrowed her eyes at me and let out a huff. "Well, if you're not going to take this seriously..."

I sat up, cupping her face in my hands. "I love you with all my heart, Bella. I never fucking thought I'd ever love like this, but then I met you. I want you to be my wife, and if you're up for it, the mother of my kids someday. So … what do you say?" I asked, cocking an eyebrow.

She looked into my eyes for a long time before a smile began to form. "Yes."

"Yes?"

"Yes!" she shouted, tackling me onto my back. "Yes, yes, yes!"

She placed kisses all over my face, and I couldn't resist capturing her lips with my own. A hot passionate kiss soon turned into a slow kiss filled with love. The need for air drew us apart, and I climbed out of bed and went to the dresser. I dug through the sock drawer before I found what I was looking for, a small blue box tucked into an ugly ass sock. I pulled the box out and walked back to the bed where Bella was laying.

Her dark hair was spread out on the pillow, her lips were swollen, and her beautiful brown eyes were watching my every move.

"Here, love," I said as I handed her the box.

With trembling hands, she took it from me and slowly opened it.

"Edward!" she gasped, "It's gorgeous."

I let out a breath that I hadn't realized I'd been holding. It was important to me that she liked it. I'd had a hell of a time finding the perfect ring, but Mom, Alice, and Rose had all helped out.

"Will you?" she asked, holding her left hand out to me.

With my own slightly shaky hands, I took the ring out of the box and slid it onto Bella's ring finger. It looked right, like it belonged there, and I couldn't wait until I put a wedding ring on there as well.

That night our love making was slow and sensual, then hard and fast. It was as if we couldn't get enough of one another.

* * *

It was amazing how much better life was when there was no impending doom lurking nearby. Finally, Bella and I were able to relax. We'd been engaged for four weeks, and I had to admit, it had been four of the best weeks of my life. The sex was fucking amazing, and our ordeal had given me all kinds of inspiration. I had a new story in the works that I was fucking thrilled about, and I couldn't wait for Bella to read the first few chapters.

"What's this?' she asked as I pushed the laptop toward her later that night.

"A new story I've been working on."

Pulling the laptop closer, she began to read while I paced around the living room. Finally, she pushed the laptop away and looked at me.

"It's our story," she said with a little smile.

"It will be. Obviously I'll be making changes here and there, but yeah. It's ours," I said, rubbing the back of my neck. "What do you think?"

"Honestly? I think it's going to be great."

I couldn't help the cocky grin that came across my face. My girl was right. It _was_ going to be great. I could feel it.

"Are you ready for the premiere?" she asked me over dinner a while later.

The premiere for _Hell Hath No Fear_ had snuck up on us, and we were to fly out of Seattle the next morning.

"Are you?" I asked, knowing that she'd been stressing over finding something suitable to wear.

"Yeah, I guess. Alice helped me find a really nice dress, so at least I won't look like a complete hag."

I frowned at her tone. She'd been feeling off for weeks, and I figured it was a result of the flu, the kidnapping, and just stress in general.

"You never look like a hag. You're gorgeous," I told her.

She made a face at me. "Yeah, right. I've gained weight, and I'm still not feeling all that great."

She had gained some weight, but I hadn't been about to say anything. Besides, it wasn't a significant amount of weight, and it filled out all those delicious curves.

"Well, you have a doctor's appointment next week, right?"

She nodded.

"Talk to her. Maybe she can tell you what's going on."

The next morning, we set out for Sea-Tac, and our flight to Los Angeles. Despite her nerves regarding the premiere, Bella was pretty fucking excited about going to L.A. I was excited for her, and I'd planned a whole weekend of things for us to do. Disneyland was at the top of the list, then the Walk of Fame, and of course the beaches. But first, we had to survive the red carpet. I was just as nervous as she was, though I'd never admit it.

I'd blanched when Kim had informed me that I was expected to walk down that red carpet and talk to reporters. Talking to reporters was one thing, but having a thousand fucking vultures snapping pictures of you was another, and one I wasn't looking forward to.

By eleven, we were settled into our suite at the Ritz, and spent a majority of the afternoon at the beach. The premiere started a little after six, so at around three Bella insisted that we begin to get ready.

I grumbled the whole time I was putting on the stupid suit that I had to wear, and fought with the stupid bow tie.

"Why the fuck won't this thing work?" I growled into the mirror.

"Because it's a clip on and you're trying to untie it?" Bella suggested from the living room area.

Turning around to make a snarky comment, I almost swallowed my tongue when I saw her. She was stunning in a long blue gown, with her hair pinned up and wearing the diamond earrings I'd given her.

"Wow!"

She blushed as she made her way toward me, and clipped the stupid bow-tie on.

"You look pretty stunning yourself," she said with a smile, leaning up to place a light kiss on my lips.

"You ready?" I asked her, linking my hand with hers as we made our way down to the lobby and out to the limo that was waiting for us.

"No. Are you?"

I shrugged, trying to act cool, but she didn't buy it.

All too soon, with hands tightly clasped, we were slowly making our way down a red carpet. It was a lot to take in and more than a bit overwhelming.

"Holy shit! Is that Pat Robinson?" she asked me in a whisper.

"Who?"

She rolled her eyes. "You know. The guy from those vampire movies."

"Bella, when have I ever watched that crap?"

She rolled her eyes again, giggling as she took it all in. We passed by tons of reporters and cameras, and movie stars. It was crazy, and I was so freaking relieved when we finally made it inside the theater.

"Oh, thank fuck that's over," I muttered as I collapsed in my seat next to Bella.

She muffled her giggles into my shoulder and shushed me as the movie began to start. I was a nervous wreck the whole time, squeezing Bella's hand throughout the movie as she whispered reassurances in my ear.

As the movie ended and the lights came up, I found myself pretty fucking impressed with how well it had gone. Sure, it wasn't Oscar material by any means, but it was a good story with strong characters. A story and characters that I'd written.

"I thought it was pretty damn good," Bella told me as we began to head out and on to the party that was being thrown.

We'd been at the party for an hour, talking with the producers, actors, and other movie people when Bella began to yawn. She looked exhausted, so I excused us and rushed her back to the hotel.

"I'm sorry, babe. I don't know why I'm so tired," she said as she climbed into the king sized bed.

"No worries, love."

It seemed as if our trip to L.A. had really done a number on Bella. If she wasn't tired, she was complaining about being too hot despite not having a temperature. If she wasn't burning up, she was grumpy and moody. It was beginning to worry me a bit.

"Maybe it's PMS?" I suggested one night after listening to her bitch for twenty minutes.

She froze mid-rant and stared at me. "No, no, no," she muttered before running toward the bathroom. I didn't know what to think.

When she hadn't come after a few minutes, I knocked on the door.

"Bella? Are you okay?"

I heard a sniffle from the other side of the door and finally it opened. "I fucked up," she said, tears streaming down her face.

"What are you talking about?" I asked, concerned.

She shook her head as the tears continued to fall, and I gathered her to me.

"Talk to me, Bella. You're kind of scaring me."

"I'm late," her muffled voice said.

_Late? What the hell did that—oh, fuck._ Late as in, late. As in, bun in the oven, baby on the way.

"Are you sure?" I asked, surprised at how calm my voice sounded.

She nodded as she said, "No, but I've been so upset, stressed and worried, and I just realized that I haven't gotten my depo shot lately."

She'd switched from the pill to the depo shot before she'd moved out here, saying it was easier to deal with.

"Hey, hey. It's okay. Look, why don't we get one of those home kits so we know for sure?"

She nodded, and that was how I found myself at a twenty-four hour convenience store staring at the thousands of brands of pregnancy tests. _Why the fuck were there so many of them? _ Eventually, I grabbed seven different tests and made my way to the counter where I paid for them and then rushed back home.

Bella's mouth fell open when I dumped the contents of the bag on the bathroom counter.

"I wasn't sure which one to get," I explained.

"Uh … well, I think one or two will be fine. Could you leave while I pee on these?" she asked.

I paced outside the bathroom door until finally, she opened the door.

"The tests say they take two minutes," she said, so we sat on the edge of the tub, hands clasped together as we waited for those two minutes to pass. And fuck, if they weren't the longest two minutes of my life.

"It's time," Bella said, and we both stood and made our way to the counter where the two pregnancy tests lay on tissue paper. One had a positive sign, while the other one had the word pregnant on it.

I just stared at the plastic pieces almost unable to believe what they said. I didn't know what to say or what to feel, and it wasn't until I heard Bella's sobs that I snapped out of my shocked state.

"I'm sor—sorry," she wailed as she gripped my shirt.

I shook my head even though she couldn't see me. I wanted children with Bella, although I sure as hell hadn't planned on having them yet.

"It's okay, love. It's going to be fine."

She pulled away and wiped her eyes as she stared at me. "How can it be fine? I've ruined everything!"

I sat down on the toilet lid and pulled Bella onto my lap. "You haven't ruined anything. You didn't make this baby by yourself. And sure, we're going to have a baby earlier than planned, but I'm okay with that. I really am," I told her, surprising myself at how okay I really was with it. I was shocked, no doubt about that, but it wasn't a bad shock.

I went with Bella to her doctor's appointment the following day, and it was confirmed that she was pregnant. Dr. Reese did an ultrasound, and I was awed at the thumping noise I heard.

"That's your baby's heartbeat," she informed us, and Bella began to tear up. I handed her some tissue as I continued to stare at the screen. Dr. Reese then pointed out our baby, and I had to admit that it looked a bit like a bug. Not that I would tell Bella that.

We left the office with printed pictures of our bug that Bella clutched tightly in her hand.

"I don't want to tell anyone just yet," she informed me as we got into the Volvo to head home.

"Why not?" I asked, curious as to why we were keeping our baby a secret.

"Everything I've read said it's best to wait until you're through the first trimester since you're more likely to miscarry during that time. I don't think I could handle it if we told everyone we're pregnant and then something happened to the baby."

Fear shot through me at the thought of something happening to our dot, but I agreed with Bella and kept things to myself. Although it was hard not to shout it out to the world, I only had to wait four more weeks before I could let everyone know.

The next four weeks proved to be extremely interesting. Bella had developed the clichéd cravings for weird food concoctions. The worst was when she put Tabasco sauce on her ice cream. That almost made me throw up. But she loved her Tabasco sauce and who was I to argue with a pregnant woman.

She also cried a lot, and I was often left feeling helpless. She'd tell me she was fine, then the water works would start again. I tried to do my best to help her out and be there for her.

"Man, you look rough, Ed. What's going on with you?" Jasper asked one night as we were out at the bar.

"Bella's driving me slightly crazy," I said.

"Women will do that to you."

"How the hell did you handle a pregnant Alice?" I asked, then shut my mouth when I realized what I'd said. _Fuck_. Bella was going to kill me.

Jasper's eyes widened. "Bella's pregnant?"

I nodded as I peeled the label off my beer. "Yeah, but don't say anything. We're making an announcement at Sunday brunch."

Jasper gave me a grin and slapped me on the back. "Congrats, man! The next few months are going to be a wild and crazy ride."

"They already are."

He snickered. "Alice drove me nuts. She cried a lot, man. I mean, _a lot_. One time she cried because I ate all the Cheerios."

I nodded as I told him about Bella's Tabasco meltdown. We'd run out of it, and the next thing I knew, she was extremely upset. I'd quickly remedied the situation and had taken to buying cases of Tabasco.

Sunday morning, we all gathered at my parents' house, and I knew it was a good thing that we were telling them about our baby. There was no way Bella would be able to explain dumping Tabasco sauce on her waffles otherwise.

After we all gathered around the table, talk of our wedding began, and I looked over at Bella. She gave me a tiny nod, and I cleared my throat.

"Bella and I have something we'd like to tell you," I began before being interrupted by Mom.

"You'd better not be telling me that you're eloping or you're already married. Not after all the work I've been putting into this wedding," she said, shooting me a look.

I shook my head. "We're pregnant."

* * *

a/n: Okay, so this pregnancy wasn't planned by them or me. Lol. It was only after readers were guessing or suggesting it that the idea grabbed hold. It certainly wasn't a part of my original plan, but I think it fits in fine. As always, let me know what you thought!


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: Thank you all so much for the reviews! They're truly appreciated. Also a big thanks to PTB for helping me out. Onward you go, just know that this chapter comes with a pregnancy lemon.**

* * *

After my announcement, there was a stunned silence. Then all hell broke loose. Mom and Alice let out screeches that would've hurt a dog's ears, and Bella and I found ourselves wrapped up in hugs. Mom kept babbling, going on and on about how thrilled and excited she was, while Dad gave us both hugs and congratulated us.

I looked across the room and noticed Charlie sitting there with a stunned look on his face. I knew he was a bit of a traditionalist, and I couldn't tell whether he was happy about our news or not. Bella exchanged a worried look with me before heading over to him.

"Dad?" Bella asked, sitting down next to him on the couch.

"Sorry, Bella. It's a bit of a shock. My baby is having a baby," he said before congratulating the both of us.

"How far along are you?" Alice asked, and I could tell that she was having a hard time containing herself. I had a feeling she was going to go all out throwing a baby shower and whatnot.

"About thirteen weeks. According to my doctor, I'm due sometime around November 13th."

And just like that, a baby shower was in the works. Alice, Mom, and Rose swept Bella from me and began talking about baby names, nurseries, and other baby related things.

"How you holding up, son?" Dad asked me after handing me a glass with some bourbon.

"I'm good. The baby was one hell of a shock, but a good one." I was quick to assure. "I'm terrified, yet excited."

"I felt that way about both of you kids. But, it's an amazing experience," Dad told me with Jasper and Charlie nodding in agreement.

We spent the rest of the afternoon hanging out with the family, and at one point, I ended up with Emma on my lap. She was adorable and a talker just like Alice. It was really more like babbling, but it was obvious that she was Alice's daughter. I bounced her up and down on my knee for a while until she began to cry. Alarmed, I went to hand her off to Jasper and then I noticed a foul odor.

"Jasper, your kid needs a diaper change," I said, holding Emma out to him.

He laughed at me and told me to get to it. "Consider it good practice," he said with a grin.

Scowling, I headed into the nursery Mom and Dad had set up for Emma. I gently put Emma down on the changing table and tried to figure out what to do next. I'd seen Jasper and Alice change Emma before. How hard could it be? Ha. It was harder than I thought trying to keep a crying, wiggling Emma still while I got her diaper off. Not to mention that the smell had me gagging more than once.

It took far longer than it probably should have, but I eventually got it done. As soon as I had the clean diaper on her, I heard a clapping sound from the doorway and found Alice leaning against it, giggling at me.

"Not bad, daddy-to-be."

I rolled my eyes at her. "Gee, thanks Al."

"Mom wants to talk to you for a minute," she said before taking Emma from me.

I followed her downstairs and headed into the kitchen where I found Mom talking to Bella. I sat down at the kitchen table next to Bella and asked Mom what was up.

"I was wondering if the two of you were planning on staying in the apartment now that you have a baby on the way."

"We're on the fence about it," I told Mom.

Bella nodded in agreement. "We haven't been in the apartment that long, and I did sign a lease."

"If you need to break the lease, it's not a problem. I'm not going to sue you," Mom said with a grin.

Taking Bella's hand in mine, I informed them both that I really wanted to raise our child in a house. Not that there was anything wrong with raising a child in an apartment, but I wanted a big yard for my child to run around in. Yes, I had a house in Forks, but there was no way that we could live there and have Bella work in Seattle. The commute would be too long.

"What do you think?" I asked Bella. "Would you be okay with moving out of the apartment?"

She told me she was okay with it as long as Mom was okay with us moving out. Mom was, then told us that she had been talking to a realtor friend of hers and thought she had found the perfect house for us.

"Now, you can say no if you're not interested in it, but I'd like you to at least look at it," she said.

We both agreed, and moments later, we were doing a virtual tour of the house. As we watched the video, Mom told us a bit more about it. The house was two stories, had four bedrooms, two and a half baths, and a huge backyard. It was in a nice, slightly upper-class gated community that was in a great school district. I looked over at Bella to see what she thought.

"Can we see it in person?" she asked Mom.

Within minutes, Mom had the realtor on the phone and was scheduling a walk through for the next day.

The following morning, Bella and I drove over to the house and met with Macy, the realtor. The house was more amazing in person, but it was the backyard that sealed the deal for me. The backyard was huge and lined with trees on both sides, blocking the houses around it. There was a fantastic view of the Sound from the backyard also. While Bella loved the backyard as well, it was the whirlpool bathtub in the master bath that sealed the deal for her.

We told Macy that we loved it, and we put in an offer then and there. Our offer was accepted almost immediately, and then we began the tedious process of inspections before eventually closing on the house.

Within a month, we had began to move into our house. It had been slow going, mainly because I might have overreacted in regards to Bella helping. She'd come out of the bathroom one morning, carrying a small box full of bathroom stuff, and I'd snapped. I'd gotten upset with her for carrying the box, and she'd snapped back, telling me she was perfectly capable of carrying it. After some arguing and having my ass handed to me, I apologized. I did, however, make her promise not to carry anything heavy.

A week later, the new house was painted and most of the furniture from the apartment and from house in Forks had been moved. I'd been fine with just shoving it all in the living room for the moment, but Bella had nixed that idea. She'd said she didn't want to be tripping over random furniture while we were trying to unpack boxes. That made sense, so with the help from my family and hers, we managed to get the furniture put in the right rooms.

All that was left to move in were the thousands of boxes we seemed to have. I swear we didn't have that much stuff, but it seemed like we did. It took several trips in a U-Haul to get it all over to the house, but then we were done. Well, done moving anyway. We still had to unpack everything.

"Come here, love," I said as I plopped my ass down on the couch in our cluttered living room after everyone had left. Bella walked over to me, and I pulled her down on my lap. "How are you feeling?"

She gave a sigh and curled into me as best as she could. "Tired, but excited to be here."

"Me, too," I told her, resting my hand on her belly. She'd started to show in the past couple of weeks. She was roughly eighteen weeks along, and at our last doctor's appointment, we were hoping to found out the sex, but Baby Cullen was apparently shy.

The two of us sat there for a good while, just enjoying the silence of our house and the thrill of being in it. I was so content that I was a bit startled when Bella's stomach let out a ferocious growl.

"Suppose I should feed you, huh?"

She nodded against my shoulder. "Yeah. We're hungry. I could go for some Thai."

Thai it was. I knew better than to argue with Bella's cravings. I'd done that once, and she'd burst into tears, leaving me feeling like a complete ass. Removing her from my lap, I stood up, grabbed my keys, and headed toward the Thai place that was around the block.

As I stood in line waiting for our order, I reflected on all that had happened to get us to where we were. It had been one hell of a fucking trip, but all that mattered was that we were together, we were getting married, and we had a kid on the way. Life was fantastic.

* * *

"Are you nervous?" Bella asked me the night before our wedding.

I shook my head. "Nope. You?"

I felt her nod where her head was rested against my chest. "A little. I'm afraid that I'm not going to fit in my dress or that I'll trip walking down the aisle."

I pressed a kiss to the top of her head and told her that her fears were unfounded. I was actually quite excited that we were getting married tomorrow. I'd known plenty of guys that had been terrified to get married, but I wasn't one of them. I couldn't wait to be married to Bella because, honestly, after all the shit that I put her through, I found it pretty fucking miraculous that she wanted to marry me.

"This time tomorrow, I'll be Bella Cullen," she said quietly, a bit of awe in her voice.

"Damn straight."

Morning came quicker than expected, and we made our way to Mom and Dad's. Bella and I had decided on simple wedding in the backyard, which had thrilled Mom. As soon as we were inside, Bella and I headed toward the kitchen so we could peek out the window and see the backyard.

It was perfect. There were chairs lined up on both sides of a makeshift aisle that was lined with flowers. A simple, yet elegant rose covered archway stood near the front where Reverend Weber would be marrying us.

"What do you think?" Mom asked, coming up behind us.

Bella threw her arms around Mom and hugged her, telling her it was perfect. I nodded in agreement. They'd also done an amazing job with the house as well. We'd agreed to have our reception there instead of dragging everyone somewhere else.

"Edward, go on up to your old room and start getting ready. The girls and I will help Bella," Mom told me, her voice brokered no argument. Giving her a salute, which earned me a swat on the arm, I headed up to my old room. It only took me a few minutes to put my tux on, although I spent a good twenty minutes struggling with the fucking tie. Finally, I gave up and headed downstairs where Dad fixed it for me.

"You ready, son?"

"More than ready."

An hour later, the chairs were filled with our friends and family. Bella's good friends, Angela and Ben, had flown in from New York, and it seemed as if the entire office from New Moon Publishing was there as well. I was also pretty sure that Mom had gotten on and located and contacted every relative that we had because the chairs were all full and a few people were even standing.

I stood at the front of the aisle to the right, with Jasper and Emmett next to me. It was taking everything I had not to fidget as I waited for Charlie to walk Bella down the aisle. Jasper leaned in and told me to calm down. I was fucking calm. I just wanted Bella in my arms. Finally, after what seemed like fucking forever, the music started playing and Bella slowly came down the aisle on Charlie's arm.

I was stunned by how gorgeous she looked. I knew she hadn't felt that way earlier this morning, going on and on about how she looked like a whale, but she was stunning. Six months pregnant and she was just as beautiful as she always was. She definitely had that pregnancy "glow."

With a kiss to her cheek, Charlie put her hand in mine, and I grasped it firmly as I gave it a light squeeze. I couldn't resist placing a kiss on her cheek and telling her how beautiful she was. She blushed a light pink and muttered that I was biased. So what if I was?

I honestly didn't have any clue what the minister was saying; I was too busy looking at my beautiful Bella, but I clearly remember him asking if I took Bella as my wife, and I practically shouted yes. I managed to reign in my enthusiasm and say the traditional "I do" before he, in turn, asked her. Moments later, I was kissing the shit out of her as we were declared husband and wife.

A clearing of Charlie's throat had me letting go of Bella's lips, and I soon found myself wrapped up in hugs and being congratulated.

"Oh, I'm so proud of you!" Mom said, giving me a kiss on the cheek and a fierce hug. I hugged her back ever so grateful for all that she'd done. Sure, she'd annoyed the hell out of me at some points, but for the most part, she'd been a major help.

"Thanks for doing all of this, Mom," I told her.

She pulled away, wiping her eyes. "My baby boy is married and having a baby of his own. I couldn't be happier."

Before long, the reception was in full swing, and Bella and I were subjected to some rather embarrassing stories about ourselves from our friends and family. After the cutting of the cake, I stood up, saying I had an announcement to make.

"We already know you knocked her up!" Emmett hollered with a grin.

I rolled my eyes at him before saying, "We finally have learned the gender of Baby Cullen."

Bella and I had been wanting to know from the get-go, but it wasn't until the last ultrasound a week ago, that we'd finally learned whether we were having a boy or girl.

"Well? What are you having?" Emmett demanded.

Bella and I shared a grin as we told everyone that we were having a boy. Hoots and hollers sounded out across the room, and we were congratulated yet again. When asked about names, we both shook our heads, saying that we hadn't settled on anything yet. And we hadn't. Bella had insisted that we each make a list with the top five boy names that we liked, and then we'd compare them. So we had, and neither of us had really liked what the other had picked. She'd suggested naming him after me, and I'd vetoed that real quick. I was not naming my kid Edward. I was partial to Elliot, but she'd told me no. Apparently, the name reminded her of the kid from _E.T.,_ which she absolutely hated.

The reception lasted for hours, and I was getting to the point where I was ready to kidnap Bella and make a run for it. I wanted to spend some alone time with my wife. At a quarter to six, we finally made our escape and headed home.

I'd suggested getting a fancy hotel suite for a wedding night, but Bella hadn't liked the idea. She wanted to spend our first night as husband and wife in our bed, not rolling around on one that hundreds of other couples had rolled around on. I understood that. We'd also decided to hold off on a honeymoon until after the baby arrived.

After I pulled into the driveway, I told Bella to stay put and walked around the car to open the door. Gently, I picked her up and began to walk toward the front door. I noticed balloons on the porch that said congratulations as well some cards. We'd come to know some of the couples in the neighborhood, and they were all really nice.

"Edward, put me down. I'm too heavy for you to be carrying me," Bella protested, kicking her feet a bit.

"You're not that heavy. Besides, are you going to deny me my right to carry my wife over the threshold of our house?"

With a huff and an eye roll, she relented and let me carry her into the house. Of course, I had to have her unlock the door for me. As soon as the door was shut and locked behind us, I began to carry her up the stairs to our bedroom. Once there, I set her down and leaned over to place a long, hard kiss on her lips.

"Welcome home, Mrs. Cullen," I said, despite the fact that I knew it sounded a bit cheesy.

"It's good to be home, Mr. Cullen," she replied before bringing her lips back to mine. Our kisses became slower, more reverent until I broke the embrace.

"Turn around, love."

She turned so that she was standing, facing the bed and held her hair up in one hand while I began to undo the buttons on the back of her dress. I silently cursed as the tiny buttons slipped through my fingers. At this rate, we'd be ninety before I got the damn dress off of her.

"Having trouble?" she asked after a few minutes.

"Fucking buttons," I growled as I struggled with the last one.

Finally, I had them undone, and I slid the dress off her shoulders, helping her as she stepped out of it. Once she was free of the dress, she turned to face me, and I was stunned by the gorgeous woman in front of me. She was wearing some sexy, lacy, white number, and it was fucking hot.

"Jesus! Good thing I didn't know you had that on underneath. I'd have taken you before you made it down the aisle."

She blushed a pretty pink and quietly told me that she'd hoped I'd like it. Like it? I fucking loved it! Ever since she'd started showing, she'd become a bit self-conscious and afraid that I'd be repulsed by her growing stomach. I'd told her she was wrong. I could never find her repulsive, especially not when she was carrying my baby.

Leaning down I gave her another kiss, my hands caressing her stomach before moving up to trace the lace that covered those gorgeous breasts.

"As sexy as this is, it has to go," I mumbled against her lips before reaching behind her to unclasp her bra. Within seconds her breasts were free and immediately in my hands. God, I fucking loved them. Of course, they'd gotten larger due to her pregnancy, and I certainly wasn't complaining about that. Gently, knowing that they were tender at times, I cupped them before running my thumbs over her nipples and then gently pinching them. A quiet moan let me know she was enjoying my ministrations.

Unable to resist, I lowered my head and took one her taut nubs into my mouth, delighting in the moans that erupted from her. Before long, she was tugging on my hair and bringing my head up for a kiss. It was hard, long, and a bit sloppy. Not that either of us cared.

She broke the kiss so that she could undo my tie before tugging at my shirt. "I want you naked. Now!" she growled.

Who was I to argue? As soon as she had my tie undone, I quickly unbuttoned my shirt and tossed it to the side before unzipping my pants. Moments later, I stood before her in nothing but a pair of black boxers. Bella licked her lips and gave me a come hither look. Wrapping her in my arms once again, I gently lowered us to the bed, hovering above her and just drinking her in.

I took my time raining kisses upon her lips, shoulders, and breasts before making my way toward her center. I placed a kiss above her mound before teasing her through her panties with little flicks of my tongue.

"I want to taste you, love," I told her, grinning when she eagerly nodded. Taking the delicate lace panties in my hands, I slowly removed them before tossing them somewhere behind me.

I settled myself in between her thighs, and I began running my hands and up and down her legs before taking my time nibbling and kissing from her knee to her inner thigh. I continued teasing her until she placed her hands on the back of my head, urging me toward what she wanted. I was more than happy to comply.

I leaned in and ran my tongue up and down her slit, loving her taste and the sounds that were coming from her. Thrusting two fingers into her wet warmth, I began to lick and suck on her a bit harder, waiting for that moment when she'd clench down on my fingers and come. It didn't take long before she screamed out my name.

By that point, I was hard as fucking steel. Kissing my way back up her body, I gave her a gentle kiss before she turned over and braced herself on her hands and knees. We'd experimented with all different positions, but this one gave her the most pleasure now that she was in her second trimester. I had no qualms with it. There was something so extremely hot about taking her from behind, my hands grasping her hips as I thrust as hard as I could into her.

Stroking my cock a couple of times, I placed it at her entrance before sliding inside, both of us groaning at the feeling. I started off slow, just reveling in the feel of being inside her, and then I began to move a bit faster. My hands grasped her hips, and I saw her slide a hand down toward her clit. That shit was fucking hot.

My thrusts grew faster and harder, and I leaned over more so that I could reach around and grasp a breast. I gave it a gentle squeeze before rolling a nipple between my finger and thumb, then giving it a light tug.

"Edward!"

_Oh, yeah. _ I was getting close and feeling Bella pulsing around me had me hanging on by a thread. A few more thrusts later, and I roared her name, feeling my body go limp. Not wanting to collapse on her, I managed to flop down beside her.

Bella rolled onto her side and curled into me, telling me over and over how much she loved me. I repeated the words. I'd never thought I'd love anyone the way I loved her.

* * *

"How about Heathcliff?"

I looked up from laptop to see if she was serious. "You're kidding, right? I'm not naming our son after a cat."

"Not that Heathcliff. The one from _Wuthering Heights_," she said with an eye roll.

I shook my head. "Not happening."

She let out a hmph then went back to looking through a baby name book she'd bought last week. We were getting closer and closer to Baby Cullen's arrival, but we were no closer to having a name for him.

"What about Owen?"

I paused in the middle of my typing and thought about it. Owen Charles Cullen. It wasn't bad, but I wasn't sure if it was a winner. We'd agreed that Baby Cullen's middle name would be Charles, so we now had to find a first name that went well with it.

"Put it on the list," I told her. We'd finally made a list of potential names, and it was pathetically short. We had four names on it. Four. Griffin, William, Logan, and now Owen. I'd had no idea it would be so hard to name a kid. Hell, I made up character names all the fucking time; but it was one thing to name a character, yet it was a whole other to name your child who would be stuck with said name for life.

I finished up the chapter I'd been typing and saved it before opening up my email. There didn't seem to be anything exciting, until I saw an email from Detective Ryder. I opened it and quickly scanned the contents. Jonathan had plead guilty so we wouldn't have to testify, but apparently Renee was going to cause trouble. Detective Ryder wanted me to know that we might have to testify against her.

I typed out a quick reply before facing Bella. "Babe? I got an email from Detective Ryder."

Immediately, she was on alert. She set down the book and gave me her full attention. I explained the situation and let her know that we may have to see her mother at some point in the future.

"Jesus fucking Christ! She just has to go and make things difficult, doesn't she? Well, that's fine. I have no problem testifying against her," she snarled.

"Let's forget about it for now," I told her, rubbing my temples. "Let's focus on the more important things in our life."

She agreed as she rubbed her belly. Our kid had been extremely active lately, and she swore that he was constantly kicking her bladder, making her have to go all the time.

We'd started a child birthing class earlier in the week. I had to admit, the class kind of scared me with all their talk about pain during labor and whatnot. I wasn't an idiot. I knew that giving birth wasn't going to be a fucking walk in the park, but we'd watched a video of a woman giving birth, and no lie, I thought I was going to puke. I never wanted Bella to be in that much pain. She'd rolled her eyes at me right before the instructor began talking about different kinds of pain relief during labor. I felt a little better knowing there were drugs out there that would help.

It was hard to believe that in a little over two months our son would be born. His room was more than ready for him, but I wasn't so sure I was. I knew nothing about being a father, but as Dad pointed out to me, what father did. Fatherhood was learned along the way.

Later that night as we lay in bed, Bella reassured me that I was going to be a great dad. "After all, you have a great example. Carlisle is an amazing dad."

She was right, and I knew without a doubt that Bella was going to be one hell of a mom.

* * *

**a/n: Well, we're almost to the end. A couple more chapters left. As always, please let me know what you thought.**


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: I can't thank you all enough for the awesome reviews. I'm sad to say that this is the last regular chapter of the story, but the epilogue will be up in roughly two weeks and then perhaps some outtakes. Big thanks to the peeps at PTB for helping me out. Now, on you go.**

* * *

Seventeen hours. That was how long Bella had been in labor, and I was beginning to freak out. No, fuck that. I was completely freaked out. Everyone had told us that first babies took their time, but seventeen hours was ridiculous. Not that I would mention that to Bella. I'd done that once already and gotten smacked hard on the back of my head. Bella in labor was a cranky, angry Bella. Granted, I would be too if I were in pain for that long.

"Not much longer, Bella," her doctor said after taking a look. "You're at nine centimeters. One more to go and then we can have you start pushing."

"That one centimeter better hurry the fuck up and get here. I want this baby out now!" Bella snarled.

Thankfully, it wasn't too much longer before Bella was fully dilated. As soon as Dr. O'Brien told her to start pushing, she did, crushing my hand in the process. I was fairly certain I would be walking out of the delivery room with a broken hand, but I wasn't going to complain. I couldn't even begin to imagine how painful it would be to give birth, especially when you opted for a natural , yes_. _Bella had decided that she didn't want any pain meds, but I was betting she was rethinking that decision right about now.

"God fucking dammit, this shit hurts! Never again, Edward! Do you hear me?" Bella shouted at me as she continued to push.

"I hear you, love," I told her, hoping that she didn't mean it. I had loved having a sibling when I was growing up, even though she had been more than annoying at times, and I wanted our boy to have a sibling as well.

After one last push, William Charles Cullen came into the world. All seven pounds, seven ounces of him, and he had a pair of lungs. After the nurse cleaned him up, let me cut the umbilical cord, and weighed him and whatnot, he was given to Bella.

Immediately, she gathered him close, and as I sat beside her, we examined every inch of him. He was fucking perfect. He had a head full of brown hair and big blue eyes that Bella swore would turn green. It didn't matter to me what color they turned out; all that mattered was that he was healthy.

"Here, Daddy," she said. "Hold him for a few minutes."

Gingerly, I took the small bundle from her and gazed down at my son, floored by the emotions running through me. I had a son, and I was a dad. I didn't even try to fight back the tears that welled up in my eyes.

Once Bella had been moved to a regular room, we spent about thirty minutes with our boy before I went to get our family so they could see him. They'd taken up residence in the waiting room of the maternity floor for the past ten hours or so. With a giant ass grin I couldn't get off my face, I headed out to them and told them Bella was ready to see them.

I was practically run over as they all raced down the hall from where I'd come. Rolling my eyes at their antics, I told them to calm the hell down and led the way to Bella's room. Within seconds, Bella was surrounded by Mom, Alice, and Rose while Charlie, Emmett, Jasper, and Dad hung back.

"We'd like you to meet William Charles Cullen. Or Will as we'll call him," Bella said, holding our little guy up so they could see him. I swore I saw Mom's hands twitch at her sides, and I was positive she was using all of her restraint to keep from snatching Will from Bella. Knowing it was inevitable, Bella handed Will over to Mom, and I warned her she had to share him.

"You'll have plenty of time to hog him later," I said.

"Oh, he's so beautiful. He looks just like you did," Mom said as she cuddled Will.

"Personally, I think William Emmett would be better," Emmett said with a grin as he looked at Will over Mom's shoulder.

"Not happening, big brother," Bella told him as she rolled her eyes. I loved the fact that Bella and Emmett had gotten so much closer since her return to Washington. The two of them could go at it for hours, leaving Rose and me to watch in fascination.

Eventually, it got to the point where I wanted some alone time with my wife and son, and I began to slowly push people out the door. I told them we'd be home tomorrow and they could stop by if they wanted, but they couldn't stay for too long. Bella and I were going to need time to adjust to having a newborn.

"Jesus! I thought they'd never fucking leave! I swear, Mom was going to sneak Will out of here just to spend more time with him," I said with a sigh as I plopped down in a crappy chair next to Bella's bed.

She let out a laugh as she slowly brushed her fingers across Will's cheek. "They just wanted to see him for a while. It's understandable. He's the most beautiful baby I've ever seen."

He truly was. I wasn't biased or anything. I'd go so far as to say he was more beautiful than Emma had been when she was born. Not that I would tell Alice that.

The next morning, a nurse wheeled Bella out to our car with me following behind carrying her overnight bag, plus a bag full of presents that my family had felt necessary to give us the previous night.

I popped open the trunk, threw the bags in, then stood back and watched as Bella put Will into the car carrier and buckled it into place. I was almost jealous with how easily she did it. It had taken me the better part of an hour, not to mention reading the fucking instructions, in order to figure the damn thing out.

As soon as she climbed in beside Will, I got into the driver's seat and started the car.

"You can drive the speed limit, you know?" Bella commented from the backseat.

"I'm afraid of going too fast and waking him up," I told her, glancing into the rear view mirror to see my son fast asleep in his carrier.

Bella rolled her eyes at me but didn't say anything else. I knew I was driving like a grandma, but I couldn't help it. I was afraid that every turn I took or bump I hit in the road would wake the sleeping boy in the back. It took forty-five minutes, but we made it home with Will still asleep in his carrier.

"Welcome home, Will," Bella whispered as she set the carrier down on the living room floor and carefully took him out. I stood there for a moment taking in the beautiful scene before me. In that moment, there was nothing more stunning than seeing my wife hold our son, and I had to capture it. Dropping the bags I'd carried in, I pulled out my phone and took the picture. It was perfect.

"I can't believe he's ours. Look what we did, Edward," she said softly as I walked over to them and wrapped an arm around Bella's waist as I looked at Will.

"We did good," I told her as I reached out to gently touch Will's cheek. His tiny eyelashes fluttered, and he slowly opened his eyes, looking at Bella. He was amazing, and I was so in love with him.

He chose that moment to let loose with a wailing cry that hurt my ears. For a second, Bella and I looked at each other, lost as to what we were supposed to do. Welcome to parenthood.

Settling into life with a newborn was an entirely unique and sometimes frustrating experience. At first all Will seemed to do was cry. He'd cry when he was hungry or needed a change; other times he'd just cry for what seemed like no reason. Bella and I spent countless hours holding him, rocking him, talking and reading to him, but none of it made much difference. He'd still cry.

By the end of the first week, we were exhausted. I couldn't remember the last time that I'd slept for more than two hours. We were trying to establish a routine with Will, but it was slow going; the boy was on his own time. Eventually, a routine was established and by the time he was three months old, he was only waking up once or twice during the night. A huge improvement from when we'd first brought him home.

It was also amazing to watch the changes in him over that short period of time. He had started laughing whenever we tickled his tummy, and he was moving his arms and legs a lot, especially when we'd play with him. At the rate he was going, he'd be a teenager before I had time to blink.

Maybe it was the writer in me, or perhaps it was just being a first-time parent, but I documented every milestone that Will had. Not to mention, Bella and I had become picture taking fiends. We were like those old ladies who kept photo albums of their cats. Every time Will smiled or cooed, moved an arm or a leg, we were there with a camera or our phones snapping away.

I was up in my office printing off a handful of pictures of Will that I'd taken the previous night when Bella called my name. Turning off the light, I headed downstairs to find my wife and son lying on the floor on a blanket. Bella had a small stuffed animal and was tickling his belly with it, causing him to make little giggles.

"Look, Will. Who is that? Is that Daddy?" Bella asked him as I walked into the living room and sat down on the floor next to them. Bella swore that Will's eyes lit up when he saw me, but I wasn't so sure. Although, according to the books that I had read, and there had been a lot, it was possible that Will could recognize me.

"Hey, buddy," I commented as I reached over and placed a kiss to his head.

"I printed those pictures off if you want to add them to the album," I told Bella. We'd become those parents—the ones that took picture after picture of their kid and placed them in photo albums.

"Thanks," she said, leaning over to give me a kiss which I eagerly returned. God, I fucking loved kissing her. I could have easily gotten lost in her kisses, but Will's little grunts interrupted us.

"We didn't forget about you," I told him, picking him up and cuddling him close as I placed another kiss on top of his head.

* * *

"Come on, Will. Don't you want some yummy bananas?" I asked him as I tried to feed him. The look he gave me was hilarious. It was a "hell no" look. He refused to eat them, despite how hard I tried. With a sigh, I set the spoon down and a few mushed bananas slid off of it onto the tray of his highchair. I was deciding what other food to try and feed him when his tiny little hands reached out and grasped at the mushy food. Within seconds, those mashed bananas were disappearing into his mouth.

"Oh, I get it. You just wanted to feed yourself, huh, buddy?" I asked with a grin, turning the video on my phone on and recording him shoving food into his mouth.

Bella was supposed to have the day off, but she'd been called into a meeting, and I knew she'd want to see this. It was amazing how confident I'd become with Will over the past months. The first time Bella had left me alone with him, I'd called my mom no less than ten times in a panic, afraid that I'd fucked up somehow. Six months later, I wasn't as worried. Hell, I was basically a stay-at-home dad which gave Will and me plenty of time to bond.

Once Will was done eating, I shot the video off to Bella, and then cleaned my boy up. He was a mess. Bananas were everywhere. His mouth, his hands, his shirt, even his hair. I grabbed a wet washcloth and began to wipe him off, causing him to giggle.

"All right, little guy. How about we go read a book?" I asked as I scooped him up and carried him into the living room. I sat down on the couch with Will in my lap and opened up one of the hundreds of books we'd bought for him. Will loved being read to. Normally, he was as wiggly as a worm, especially since he'd learned how to roll, but when we read to him he sat pretty still. As soon as I finished reading the book my phone rang, and I grabbed it off the coffee table where I'd laid it.

"Hey, Mom. What's up?"

"You're hogging my grandchild! I haven't seen him in three days," she complained, and I let out a laugh. Since we lived three hours away, she didn't get to see him as often as she liked, so she and Dad had opened up one of the houses they owned in Seattle and would stay there when we couldn't get down to Forks.

"We have Emma for the weekend, so your dad and I thought we'd come up to Seattle this afternoon. Why don't you let us have Will for the evening? That way you and Bella can have a couple of hours to yourselves," she suggested.

It was a good suggestion, and I told Mom I'd let her know after I talked to Bella. I hung up the phone and sent Bella a text, managing to remove the pen cap from Will's hand that he snatched off the table. Our boy was a grabber. If he could grab it and attempt to shove it in his mouth, he did.

"You don't eat pen caps, kiddo," I told him, tossing my phone down beside me and bouncing Will up and down on my lap. Within seconds, the air was filled with his giggles. He could do this for hours, and I found it just as amusing as he did.

My phone rang startling both of us, and I set him down on his blanket on the carpet while I answered it. Bella thought it would be wonderful to have a few hours to ourselves, and I totally agreed. I loved Will with all my fiber, but there were moments where Bella and I needed some time for just us.

"Hey, Will. Do you want to talk to Mama?"

Of course, he didn't answer, but I put the phone up to his little ear so Bella could talk to him. His eyes went wide when he heard his mama's voice, and he began to move his head searching the room for her.

"She's not here, but you'll see her later," I assured him. I talked to Bella for a few more minutes before hanging up, and then I put Will down for a nap. I must have napped for a while myself because I woke up to hear Bella singing to Will. She wasn't the best singer, but Will didn't seem to care.

"Hey, babe," she said as she walked into the room." I talked to your mom, and she said we can drop Will off whenever, and she wants him to spend the night. So go get showered and changed. We're going on a date."

An hour later, Will was in the capable hands of his grandparents, and Bella and I were seated in an honest-to-goodness restaurant. We hadn't gone out to eat at a restaurant in forever.

"I'm so glad your mom suggested this," Bella said over dinner.

"Me, too. As much as I love Will, it's nice to spend time with just you," I told her.

We had a great time at dinner and then we went to one of the hottest clubs in Seattle. We weren't club people, but it felt great to cut loose and dance with my girl. We stayed and danced for a while, but all I could really think about was having Bella for dessert; about being able to take our time and not worry about Will's cries interrupting us. In the past six months, we'd perfected the art of the quickie.

I'll admit that I sped a bit on the way home, and the second the front door was closed and locked, I wrapped her up in my arms and had her back pressed against the wall. I was so used to being rushed that Bella had to tell me to slow down, that we had all night. Taking her hand, we headed upstairs to our bedroom where we slowly undressed one another and made love for hours.

I woke up a little after five the next morning and glanced at the clock wondering why Will hadn't let out his usual "I'm awake, come get me" cry. Then I remembered that he was with Mom and Dad. I'd have to do something super nice for them. It had been great being able to spend an entire evening alone with Bella. Not that I didn't miss my boy, I did.

Letting Bella sleep in, I got up and headed downstairs to make breakfast for us. Half an hour later, Bella came into the kitchen and watched as I began plating the food. Now, I wasn't a great cook by any means of the imagination, but even I could manage bacon, eggs, and frozen waffles.

"Thanks, babe," Bella said, giving me a peck on the lips. "This is great."

"Meh. It's nothing like the breakfast you make, but it works."

After breakfast, we showered and dressed before heading to Mom and Dad's. Fifteen minutes later, we walked into their house to the sounds of Will's giggling. We found him lying on his stomach on a blanket in the living room, Emma next to him babbling away and showing off her stuffed bear.

The minute she spotted us, Emma toddled over and thrust her bear into Bella's hands.

"Who is this?" Bella asked her, crouching down to Emma's level.

"Bear," Emma said before snatching it and running back toward Will. She plopped down beside him and thrust the bear at him. Will's tiny hands managed to grasp it and he brought the bear's ear to his mouth, slobbering all over it. Mom was quick to remove it which resulted in a loud wail from him.

"Hey, now. There's no need to cry, sweetie," Bella said, leaning down to scoop him up. He hiccuped a few times as he laid his head on her shoulder.

"Thanks for watching him," I told Mom and Dad.

They both shook it off and told me Will was a joy to watch. We ended up staying for a few hours playing with Emma until Will started to fall asleep. Gathering him up, we headed home, glad to have him back with us.

* * *

I woke up and took a look at the clock and noticed it was 6:13. In exactly two minutes, Will would let us know he was awake and ready to get out of his crib, not that he didn't attempt to get himself out. The past three mornings we'd gone into his room, only to find him halfway out of the crib. When I told Mom about it, she'd said I'd been the same way. Only I'd managed to get out and would wander into their room.

"Da! Ma!" Will's little voice chirped over the baby monitor. I grinned at how punctual my boy was. It never failed, no matter what day of the week it was or what time he'd gone to bed. His internal clock had him up at 6:15 every morning.

Normally, Bella would be up as soon as we heard Will's voice, but she'd been feeling off the past couple of weeks. Deciding to let her sleep in, I got up and went to Will's room where I found him bouncing up and down on his little legs.

"Da!" he exclaimed when he saw me, holding his arms up to me. I plucked him out of his crib, changed his diaper, and took him downstairs for some breakfast. Setting him in his highchair, I gave him a bowl of Cheerios and began to make the coffee.

"Ma?" he asked.

"Sleeping, buddy. She'll be up soon. Until then, it's just you and me," I told him as he devoured his Cheerios.

Once he was done eating, I set him down in the living room with his blocks and race cars, while I grabbed a Pop-Tart and my coffee. Food and drink in hand, I headed back to the living room and took a seat on the couch, watching as Will played.

Tomorrow would be his first birthday, and I still found it hard to believe that a year had flown by. A whole fucking year. Gone! My son was growing up way too fast. He was walking, talking a little bit more every day, and was incredibly curious about everything around him.

"Play," he said, patting the ground next to him.

Like I could refuse him? I set my plate and mug down on the coffee table and sat down next to him on the floor. For an hour, we built block towers and knocked them down only to rebuild them. Will talked the entire time, and while I didn't understand a majority of what he said, I did my best to respond to him.

"Good morning, my boys," Bella's sleepy voice said from behind us.

I stood up and walked over to her, wrapping my arms around her waist before giving her a kiss.

"Hey, love. How are you feeling?"

She wrinkled her nose and told me she was feeling a little better, and there was a definite sparkle in her eyes.

"Are you sure you're okay? Maybe you should go see Dad."

She leaned her head against my shoulder, her arms wrapped around my neck. "I'm fine, Edward. I'm better than fine. I'm pregnant," she told me, causing my mouth to fall open. We hadn't been actively trying, but then again, we hadn't not been trying.

I pulled away and looked down at her. "Seriously?"

She nodded, a smile blooming on her face. "Seriously. I took a couple of tests yesterday and they were both positive."

I let out a whoop before hugging her tightly and pressing a hard kiss to her lips. To say I was thrilled would have been an understatement. I was fucking ecstatic.

"Did you hear that, Will?" I asked, scooping him up in my arms. "You're going to be a big brother!"

Will gave me a big grin and clapped his little hands together even though he had no idea what we were saying. I guess the excitement was contagious.

Bella had been able to get an appointment with her ob-gyn, Dr. O'Brien, for that afternoon so a little after two, the three of us were sitting in the exam room.

"All right, you two, let's see what we've got," Dr. O'Brien said after she'd confirmed that Bella was pregnant. Bella and I both grinned when we heard our baby's heartbeat come through the ultrasound machine.

"Looks like you're roughly eleven weeks along," she said, surprising us both. We hadn't realized that Bella would be that far along. Then again, we'd both been really busy with work lately and planning Will's birthday party.

"Should we tell them tomorrow?" Bella asked as we drove home.

"Yeah," I said, a huge smile on my face. "Definitely."

The next day was utter chaos. Will woke up at his usual time, and Bella and I wished him a happy birthday. He had no idea what was going on, but he was more than excited when his grandmother, both grandfathers, aunts, uncles, and cousin showed up.

Alice was a bit put out that we were letting Will run around in a diaper and not some cute outfit, but I told her there was no point in putting clothes on him when he was just going to get covered in cake and icing. I remembered how upset she'd gotten when she'd put Emma in some fancy dress that had ended up smeared with frosting. Lesson learned.

"Come here, silly boy," Bella said, scooping up a giggling Will. He squirmed to get away but settled down when she put him in his highchair. If there was one thing Will wouldn't refuse, it was food. Bella set the small round cake in front of him, and for a moment he just stared at it.

"Go ahead, big guy," I told him. "You can eat it."

Tentatively, he stuck a finger into the cake and brought it to his mouth. The look on his face as he tasted the icing was hilarious. His eyes lit up and within seconds tiny fistfuls of cake were being shoved into his mouth.

I was cracking up as I tried to capture it on film. He had cake and frosting everywhere—his hands, his face, his chest, his hair. I knew we'd be dunking him in the bath once he was done eating.

Not only did he seem to enjoy eating it, he was also very protective of it. Emma tried to stick her finger in his cake, and he let out a low growl before shouting no, and hugging the cake to his chest. Eventually he stopped eating, his belly probably full, but when Bella removed the cake from his tray, he let out a wail rivaling that of a banshee.

"It's okay, buddy," I told him, picking him up and holding him as far away from me as possible. I did not want to end up covered in that mess. Will had other ideas, though. His tiny hands reached out and grasped each side of my face, leaving frosting-covered hand prints which had my family howling with laughter.

Rolling my eyes at them, I took Will upstairs and started the bath. Fifteen minutes later, I had a slippery, wiggly, clean boy on my hands who took off down the hall naked. I easily caught up with him, put a diaper on him and put him into some clothes.

Once we were back downstairs, Will was given his presents. He had a blast ripping the paper off and playing with the ribbons, but the best part was the boxes his toys came in. He loved those. He'd climb inside them, dump his blocks and cars into them, and couldn't care less about what had come in those boxes. And let me tell you, there were some extremely noisy toys in those boxes. There was a toy piano, a car that made noises, a stuffed bear that counted and sang when you pushed its paws, a little play table with all kinds of gadgets. The kid made out like a bandit.

After Will was down for a nap, Emmett and Rose told us they had an announcement to make. Bella and I shared a look figuring that they were going to be sharing the same kind of news we were, and we were right. They announced they were expecting, and hugs, tears, and congratulations were given out, and Charlie was beyond thrilled he would have another grandchild to spoil.

"Well, we have news too," I said with a grin. "We're expecting as well."

More tears, hugs, and congratulations were given, and then I cracked up when Alice announced that she was pregnant as well. Mom was over the fucking moon. She was going to have three new grandbabies to spoil. Mom considered Rose and Emmett family as much as she did the rest of us, so as far as she was concerned, their children would be her grandchildren as well.

Later that night, as we lay in bed, I asked Bella what she was hoping this baby would be.

"I don't care as long as he or she is healthy," she said quietly, giving me a kiss.

"No preference at all?"

"Nope," she said. "You?"

"I want a girl. A little Bella clone," I told her, grinning at the thought. Tthough in all honesty, it didn't matter. I loved him or her already. How could I not? Like Will, this baby was made from us.

Long after Bella fell asleep, I was still awake and thinking about how my life had changed since I'd met Bella. At times, it had been a rough and bumpy road, especially when it had come down to dealing with Renee. The woman had refused to cooperate with the police or admit her guilt but eventually the prosecution had worn her down. She'd been charged with aided and abetting a criminal and has served some time in Florida. We hadn't heard from her since and we were okay with that. Removing thoughts of Renee from my mind, I focused on my family. I had an amazing wife and son, a fantastic home, a great job. And this new baby just sealed the deal. My life was full, and I couldn't be happier than I was right now.

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**a/n: As always, let me know what you thought. I'll see you all in two weeks, maybe earlier.**


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: Well folks, this is the last chapter. It's short and sweet, and to the point. Thanks so much for coming along for the ride!**

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**5 Years Later**

"Will! Stop pestering your brother!" Bella said, exasperation evident in her tone. I'd told her the kids wouldn't sit still long enough for a Christmas family photo, but Bella hadn't listened to me. This was why we had two cranky little boys making faces at each other, and a little girl who was attempting to crawl away.

I snatched Hannah up before she could get too far, then plopped her in Will's lap. My six year-old looked less than enthused at having to hold his baby sister.

"Da-ad! Why do I have to hold Hannah? Why can't Owen do it?" Will whined as Hannah began to struggle to get away.

"Because," I told him, falling back on the old adage parents used. Will didn't like my answer, and I could tell he was seconds away from arguing with me when Bella told the kids to smile, and then she took the picture.

"Well, crud," she said, holding the camera up so I could see the results. I thought it captured our kids perfectly. Will was scowling, Hannah wasn't paying attention, and Owen was making a silly face.

"It's perfect," I told her, giving her a kiss on the lips, much to the disgust of our six and four year-olds. Gagging and retching sounds filled the air, along with the words "ew" and "gross." Bella and I broke apart with a grin before I turned to our little monsters and told them to grab their coats.

"Help Hannah into hers!" Bella called out as the sounds of little footsteps made their way into the mudroom.

"Are you sure you want to add another kid into the mix?" I asked. She cocked an eyebrow at me and told me it was a little late to be asking that. After all, she was five months pregnant with our fourth. We had agreed though, that this baby would be our last. Will was six, and we didn't want any larger of an age gap between the kids.

Grabbing the Tupperware containers that held a delectable array of cookies, I followed Bella into the mudroom where we found our crew in giggles. Owen had put on my coat and shoes and was stomping around pretending that he was me. At two, Hannah didn't really understand what Owen was doing, but since it amused her brothers, it amused her too.

_Stomp, stomp, stomp. _"Clean your room," Owen said in a low voice I assumed was supposed to sound like me. I smirked and raised an eyebrow at my youngest son when he caught my eye. He flashed his mother's smile and said in an innocent voice, "Hi, Dad."

"Do I really sound like that?" I asked my wife and kids, who all nodded. Rolling my eyes at them, I took my coat from Owen and slipped it on.

Thirty minutes later, we were loaded up and in the car, ready to head to my parents' house for Christmas. My folks had insisted that we spend Christmas at their place, and everyone was going to be there. And by everyone, I meant Alice, Jasper, and their two daughters, Emmett and Rosalie with their son and daughter, and Charlie and his wife, Sue. It was going to be a packed house, but I knew Mom was thrilled about it. There was nothing she loved more than having all of her grandbabies under one roof. I wasn't sure we'd be sane come Christmas afternoon.

What used to be a three hour trip to Forks, now took a bit longer. At some point during the trip, one or all of the kids would need a bathroom break, not to mention breaking up the arguments that occasionally erupted between Will and Owen. They were only a year and a half apart and as close as brothers could be, although; that didn't stop them from nagging each other to death once in a while.

Today's argument was regarding which ninja turtle was cooler. Personally, I was a Donatello fan, but as far as my boys were concerned, I was old so my opinion didn't count. Not too much later, the backseat quieted down a bit. A quick glance in the rear view mirror showed me Hannah was napping and the boys had each pulled out a book and were reading. I grinned at the sight. Our kids were total bookworms.

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"Don't even think about it, Will," I said as I watched my son try to sneak a cookie off the plate being left out for Santa.

"But Dad—"

"No buts," I told him in a stern voice.

"It's not like Santa needs to eat all those cookies. He's fat enough as it is," Will mumbled, and it took all I had not to laugh. My son had a point. The plate being left for Santa was filled with at least a dozen cookies, and when no one was looking I snatched one off and quickly shoved it in my mouth.

"Edward Anthony Cullen! Those cookies are for Santa!" Mom hissed from behind me. _Shit_. I was so fucking busted.

"Sorry, Mom. I couldn't resist," I told her.

"You're as bad as your sons. I've been chasing those boys away from the cookies all evening," she said with a grin and a head shake. There was no denying that she was right. My sons were so much like me at times it was scary. Both boys had gained my temper and knack for overreacting, but they'd also gained my love for storytelling. Often times, we'd find Will sitting in front of my computer poking away on the keyboard with a Word document open. At six, his stories didn't always make sense and there were more than a few grammatical errors, but we didn't care. We just loved that he loved to write. Owen, on the other hand, enjoyed telling stories to people, especially ones that made people laugh. He was our comedian, and he had an extremely overactive imagination. The stories he came up with left us baffled half the time, but Will and Hannah loved them.

"Nana!" Emma, Alice and Jasper's daughter, called from the living room. "Pops is about to start reading the Christmas stories so you and Uncle Edward need to come in here!"

Mom rolled her eyes and told me that Emma was a mini-Alice. She was right. Emma was Alice made all over; kid bossed her little sister, Lydia, around all the time and never stopped talking.

With a grin, I headed into the living room and plopped down on the couch next to Bella and Hannah. Hannah was curled up in Bella's lap, her thumb in her mouth and her tiny fingers playing with Bella's hair. I'd just gotten settled and given my girls each a kiss when Owen climbed up next to me. I wrapped an arm around his shoulder and sat back as my Dad opened up an old copy of _'Twas the Night Before Christmas. _For as long as I could remember, Dad had always read that story to us on Christmas Eve. It was a tradition. Just like it was tradition that Mom would turn off the lights, leaving only candles for Dad to read by, and put on some Christmas carols to play in the background.

Once everyone was settled and the mood was set, Dad began to read. His voice flowed through the room and not one kid made a peep, which was a miracle in and of itself. I'd thought for sure that Will would be poking the presents that were near him as he sprawled out on the floor near the tree, but his attention was focused on his Pops.

All too soon, the story was over and Mom turned the lights back on, telling the kids they needed to get ready for bed. All seven kids whined, groaned, or cried at Mom's announcement, but all it took was a few Mom stares and the kids headed up toward their rooms. Taking Hannah from Bella, I headed upstairs to change her and put her in the small trundle bed that was in our room.

Once was Hannah was down, I popped my head into the room where all three boys would be staying and found an interesting conversation going on. The three boys were standing around in their superhero underwear comparing the characters that each of them wore.

"Wolverine is the bestest," Owen was arguing with his tiny hands on his hips.

"Nu uh," Jack, Emmett and Rosalie's son who was also four, argued. "Batman is."

"You're both wrong," Will said, crossing his arms over his chest. "Iron Man is the coolest."

I could sense a loud argument about to happen so I stepped in. "Actually, I'm the best and the coolest, and I say it's time to get those PJs on and get into bed."

"You're not a superhero, Dad!" Owen told me.

I raised an eyebrow in his direction. "How do you know? Maybe I am. Maybe I put on a costume and go around fighting crime when you're sleeping."

The boys found this immensely funny and burst into giggles. I was so glad I was able to amuse them, I thought with an eye roll. Finally, all three boys were settled into their beds, giggling and talking. It was only the threat Santa wouldn't come if they were awake that finally got them to quiet down.

I checked in on Hannah once more before heading downstairs where Dad was handing out glasses of wine, and a glass of water for Bella.

"Everyone settled in?" she asked. I nodded as I set the baby monitor on the coffee table. Hannah would occasionally wake up crying when she stayed in some place other than her own room. Thankfully, it was happening less often.

We sat around talking, drinking, and eating Santa's cookies. It was nice to have time to relax without any kids interrupting. Although, I wouldn't put it past Will to wake up and sneak down for a peek at his presents. A little before midnight, we called it a night. All the presents brought by Santa had been put under the tree, and we knew we'd be woken up early by our kids. Saying goodnight, Bella and I headed upstairs to my old room where Hannah was sound asleep. Bella leaned down to place a kiss on Hannah's cheek before changing and climbing into bed.

I swore I'd just fallen asleep when I heard her.

"Da-ad! Ma-ma! Up!"

With a groan, I rolled over and found Hannah sitting up on her trundle bed. A glance at the clock showed it was a little after five, so with another groan I got out of bed, scooped my baby girl up and plopped her into our bed. I told her it was still sleepy time, and she had to be quiet. Surprisingly, it worked. She snuggled between us and fell back asleep only to be woken up an hour later by her brothers barging into our room.

"It's Christmas!" our boys yelled as they jumped up and down on the bed. Blurry-eyed, I told them to give us a few minutes, be quiet, and we'd all head down in a few minutes. It took all their restraint, but they nodded and waited as Bella and I got ready, then we all headed downstairs.

Fifteen minutes later, we were all gathered around the huge tree, and Charlie had gotten the esteemed role of playing Santa. With a red hat on his head, he began to dole out gifts to the kids first, then to the rest of us. Within seconds, the air was filled with the sound of ripping paper, squeals, shouts, and over all madness.

"Holy cow! Look what Santa brought me!" Will hollered as he shoved a giant Iron Man action figure my way. I'd known he'd go nuts over it and was glad to see I was right.

"It's Perry the Platypus!" Owen shouted a few minutes later as he hugged a plush turquoise colored platypus to his chest. He was obsessed with the show _Phineas and Ferb_, and I had to admit I liked it as well, and Bella was more than happy to tease me about it.

I looked up from the floor where I was sitting and watched as Bella helped Hannah open her present. She let out a squeal when she saw the Cabbage Patch doll inside the box, and the second Bella opened the box for her, Hannah was clutching the doll to her chest and rocking it gently. I made my way over to them and asked, "What do you have there?"

"Baby!" she told me with a huge smile, then reached out to touch Bella's stomach. We'd tried to explain that Bella was having a baby, but we weren't sure she really understood. Perhaps we were wrong.

Two days later, we packed up our SUV and began the drive home. The kids were tuckered out from spending the day playing with their new toys and cousins, and all three of them were asleep by the time we got home. Later that night as we tucked them in, I couldn't help but feel blessed.

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**5 More Years Later**

"Okay, guys. Smile for the camera," I told my kids as they sat on the steps of the beach house my parents had bought a few years ago.

Huge smiles crossed all their faces and within seconds, the perfect moment was caught on camera. It was summer vacation, and the four of them were having the time of their lives. There was nothing they loved more than spending the day playing in the sand or in the shallows of the ocean.

"Can we go down to the beach now? Please," Will begged as he and his brothers and sister gave me puppy dog looks. _Like I could say no to those faces? _ I told them to go put on their suits, have Bella put sunblock on them, and then we could go. They stampeded through the house to their rooms, and I headed inside myself to change as well.

Twenty minutes, a cooler, an umbrella, and a bag of toys later, we were settled on the beach. As I sat back and watched my kids play, I found it hard to believe that my oldest was going to be starting fifth grade and my youngest was going to be starting kindergarten. _Where the hell had the time gone?_

"You okay?" Bella asked me, running a hand over my hair.

"Huh? Yeah, I'm fine. Just a bit in disbelief that the kids have grown up so fast," I told her.

She gave me a smile and placed a kiss on my lips. "I know. I can't believe Elliot is starting school. Seems just like yesterday we were bringing him home from the hospital."

I grinned as I thought back on that day. Will and Owen had been thrilled they had another brother to play with, and Hannah had just been happy there was a baby in the house. It had taken all of us a few weeks to settle into the routine having yet another baby in the house, but when it was all said and done, the kids had been a great and had loved to help out with Elliot.

Five years later, the kids were a tight group, despite the age differences. Sure, the boys tended to stick together more often than not, but Hannah didn't seem too upset by that. She was our biggest bookworm and would rather curl up with a book than play Transformers with the boys or with her barbies. Besides, Bella and Hannah had a super close relationship and would often go out and have girl dates together.

"C'mon, Mom!" Elliot said, coming up to us. "We wants to build the biggest sandcastle ever!"

With a grin, Bella stood up and held out a hand to me. "Let's go, Dad. Our kids need our help."

I took her hand and followed her down to the shoreline where our kids had started their sandcastle. We sat in the sand for hours, talking, giggling, and building the most awesome sandcastle ever. Once our castle was done and pictures had been taken, we headed inside for dinner.

Later that night, I sat on the steps of the porch, listening to the sounds of the waves crashing and thinking how perfect my life was. I had the most amazing wife, an awesome family, and my writing had reached an all-time high. Life really couldn't get much better than it was.

"There you are. Elliot wants you to read him a story," Bella said, opening up the screen door.

Getting up, I dusted my pants off, and headed inside, dropping a kiss on Bella's lips before making my way upstairs. I found my boy waiting for me with his copy of _Fantastic Mr. Fox_. Snuggling down in the bed next to him, we began to read together, and wasn't long before his soft snores hit my ears. Placing a kiss on his head, I put the book away, turned off the lights, and went to say goodnight to my other children. Once kisses, hugs, and I love you's had been given, I headed downstairs and found Bella on the couch. She was looking through a photo album that Mom had made years ago, and there was a small smile on her face.

I sat down next to her and pulled her against me. "Happy?" I asked.

"Extremely," she said, tilting her head back, and allowing me to place a kiss on her sweet lips. I'd watched my parents growing up and had always wanted what they had, and now I had it. Like Bella said, I was extremely happy and life was fucking great.

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**a/n: That's all she wrote. As always, let me know what you thought! Thanks so much for reading this little story!**


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